Little Artist
by 15stepsdown
Summary: Having found a child collapsed on the road during a rainstorm, Sasori takes him in. With the Akatsuki's approval, he is tasked to take Deidara under his wing and raise him. However Deidara isn't quite safe yet, for there's some unfinished business he's left back in Iwagakure. Meanwhile, Sasori has some problems of his own, problems he's not willing to explain. Kidfic.
1. Discomfort

**A/N: If you want more info on the fanfic, I have a more complete summary on my profile.**

Regular narration

_Thoughts(POV) _

"_Emphasis when speaking or white zetsu_"

"YELLING"

"**_Harsh_****_ tone when speaking or black zetsu_**"

_onomatopoeia _

_Flashback_

"Dialogue"

**I do not own Naruto. The characters in this fanfic belong to Masashi Kishimoto.**

**Nice to meet you all! Please review if you'd like!**

* * *

**Discomfort**

_ BOOM_

Birds in the vicinity of the blast immediately retreated, escaping the fiery blaze that erupted from the undergrowth of the damp forest. It was mid-day but there was no sun, replacing the rays were dark clouds raging with thunder. The rain poured hard onto the earth, soothing the scar that had blown it's way into the forest. The tiny fires that started were quickly put out, leaving only the blackened brown scorched skin of the land visible for all things to see.

You'd think that nothing had survived such an event.

The nearby bushes ruffled, out of it's damp greenery revealed a small blonde child wearing a green robe. His eyes were wide, gasping for breath as he quickly leaned against a tree for support. After a few moments spent resting, he limped forward towards the road ahead. His lungs ached, he felt so tired...his mind was hazy from the previous events that happened that day.

_I hate them..._

He was tired...so tired...

_Master..._

The world faded to black.

* * *

_(Naruto Shippuden OST 1 Track 17 – Rakujitsu[Setting Sun])_

_ Click..._

_ Clack..._

_ Click..._

_ Clatter..._

_ What's that?_ Consciousness returned. The boy shifted slightly, noticing the warmth that engulfed his body. It contrasted from what he expected, a cold damp and muddy floor.

_Clack..._

_ Clack..._

_ ..._

He shifted his weight again, a cloth laid on top of him as he moved. A soft material, much like the stuff he was currently sleeping on. The child took a steady breath, cautiously forcing his heavy eyelids to open. The darkness of the room was what immediately caught his attention, however balanced out with a small flicker of gentle orange light in the corner. The floor was visible, illuminated by the glow of a candle pressed up to the wooden wall. By the light, a figure leaned over a desk, busying itself with some unknown task. By now he was sure that the clacking noises had come from there.

_Click..._

_ Clack..._

_ Click..._

_ Clatter..._

"Uh...?" The words were meant to be thought, but had accidentally come out as a whisper. The figure sitting on the desk paused. More clattering continued, before the blurr of a figure suddenly rose in height, indicating it had stood up. A mass of red was visible on its head, stirring a memory from within the boy. Where had he seen that before?

Promptly, the figure made its way over to him and knelt down, face hidden from view. There was a silence, only the child's own breathing could be heard over the quiet crackle of the candle. The boy blinked slowly, he could only hear his own breathing? What of the other's breath? A gentle hand rested on his shoulder before shaking it, a low voice whispered, "Hey, wake up. Come on."

The child groaned softly and blinked a couple of times before moving on his own. Rising from the bed, the boy noted the soreness of his body, hands coming up to rub the sleep out of his eyes while the other continued to speak.

"You remember me?"

Letting his hand drop, the boy tilted his head towards the speaker, groggily staring at the features of the other. A person, much older than himself, though one could still consider him quite young. Brown eyes stared back, lidded in a bored expression with messy raid hair to top it off. For a reason he couldn't quite recall, the boy was quick to put a name to a face. He cocked his head, a gentle glow from the candle illuminating his face.

"Sa...Sasori?"

"That's right."

'Sasori' shuffled on the spot as the boy continued to rub his eyes and blink, hoping to get better view of the area he had been brought to. After nearly a minute, the world finally cleared up. The room was fairly-sized, beige tatami mats lined up perfectly on the floor while he himself sat upon a futon bed. Considering the windows next to the candle it was a night, the world beyond was a pitch-black.

"Found you laying around in the middle of a rainstorm."

The boy turned his attentions to Sasori, suddenly alert of what he was hearing. The redhead seemed to notice this, taking a moment before going on.

"Makes me wonder what you were doing out there. Don't usually find kids sleeping in the dirt. You didn't even have an umbrella when I checked."

The redhead got up and walking back to his desk. He laid his hand on a cylindrical object, seemingly made of wood with a gentle curve carved into it. Sasori eyed the object in the cold silence, expression hidden in the shadows. Sasori seemed to consider his words carefully, as if uttering the wrong word would spark some sort of trouble.

"You have anybody to go back to? A parent? Or teacher? Some home?"

_Teacher?_ The boy pondered the question. He felt as if he should have known the answer immediately, but found he couldn't quite reply in the way that most like him should have. A memory popped up, causing the child to frown deeply. No, he didn't want to go back, not to that. A tapping sound awoke him from his thoughts, realizing that Sasori had been tapping the table, impatient with his reply.

"I don't want to go back. No, I think."

"You think?"

The boy cocked his head. "I mean, I don't think it'd be good if I went back but I'm not sure."

Sasori turned his back on the child, more clicking and clanging sounds emitting from the table as the redhead continued to do something on the desk. The boy blinked, visible eye wide with a sparkle of curiosity as he wondered what Sasori was doing. Picking up a silver object, the older faced him once again a tool in hand, a blade-like thing however barely resembling a knife. Bored brown eyes stared squarely into his own, a mild surprise coming over his features, mouth opening slightly agape. Even as his vision had cleared, his mind was still slightly clouded by grogginess.

"What are you doing?" The boy asked slowly.

Abruptly, Sasori discarded the tool onto the desk and made his way back to the child. A hesitation seemed to plague him, however, an emotion showed on his face that the boy couldn't quite read, something he had never really seen. It felt familiar, as if he had seen it before, but some other aspect of it...was in the dark to him.

Knelt by the futon, Sasori kept going with his barrage of questions.

"What's your name?"

"Deidara," Said child looked down, pulling his hands from his blanket. An immediate relief came over him at the sight of finger-less gloves, still dirtied and stiff from the rainwater and mud. Looking himself over, Deidara noticed that he had been put into a different set of clothing, though rather large, they would do. Over next to him, his dry clothes were folded neatly, mesh under-shirt hanging on the wall.

"I couldn't get those gloves off no matter what I tried. I figured you couldn't catch a cold from wearing them so I didn't bother. To answer your first question, you're at an inn. I'm on my way somewhere but I had to make a pit-stop because of you. Be grateful I even brought you."

Deidara furrowed his eyebrows, scanning Sasori over. A black cloak looked baggy and loose, paired with a low collar; uncomfortable. _What kind of clothes are that?_

"Where do you come from?"

The blond hesitated. "...Iwa," He paused and replied with a question of his own. "Where are _you_ from?"

Sasori was quiet for a moment. "Who knows?"

"Hmph.."

"You've been asleep for about a day, you still want to stay in bed?"

Deidara opened his mouth but was interrupted as a sound emitted from the outside. Adult voices barked out orders followed by some laughing and shuffling noises. The boy froze, body stiffening as glowing lights appeared from the corner of the window. An old sense of dread tugged at him, trembling slightly. Sensing his apprehension, Sasori tried to relax himself and explain away the fear.

"There's a festival going on."

"A festival?" The blond repeated, eyes following Sasori as he stood up to get back to work on the desk. Deidara looked down at his blankets, tone rising in excitement and wonder. "They don't have festivals in Iwa..."

"It's just a bunch of noise and pointless stuff. You wouldn't like it."

A thought barely stirred at the comment, mind still pondering the idea of a festival. He heard they were fun, full of great activities and delicious food as well as entertainment and other things. A festival seemed all sorts of excitement, considering how people seemed to like them so much.

"It's actually morning, but it's pretty early. The people outside are setting up."

Deidara looked at Sasori curiously and nodded. Scooting to the edge of the futon, the child slipped out of his covers, only then realizing as something stiff clung tightly to his body. Glancing over, a bandage covered his upper arm, a red colour staining the white gauze. The boy barely noticed the sharp pain that resulted, lifting it to eye-level.

"You were wounded too, I wonder why that is," The question was raised in a passive manner, but the child caught on quickly having heard this pattern of speech before. In attempt to clear the enquiry, the boy pulled a straight face and answered.

"Cat."

"Really? Pretty deep slash for a cat. What kind of cat was it? A tiger?" Sasori spoke sarcastically.

Deidara growled and clenched is blankets. "I'm telling you, it was a cat!"

"Cats tend to leave at least three parallel marks in the skin, as well as being shallow so they're not serious. Your wound however," Sasori made eye contact with the child, a suspicious air coming about him, "Was a single clean cut that went at least a centimetre into the flesh. Not the work of any cat I've ever known."

Deidara huffed and crossed his arms. "It was a cat."

"Nice try,"

"Dog."

"No."

"Crow."

"That was a cut wound brat, something cut you. Like a knife or kunai, I want to know what. Like I said, you don't usually find kids sleeping on the dirty dirt in a rainstorm."

_Brat!?_ The boy snapped his head towards Sasori, offence evident on his face. He had heard his fair share of insults and names, but not once had anyone called him that. It registered to him now that the name had been used, words barely processing a few moments ago.

"So what happened?"

The child frowned. "What are you gonna do if I tell you?"

Sasori paused his work, mildly astonished to hear a comeback. Deidara watched as the redhead spun in his chair to face him. He tried his best to push fear to the back of his mind. He was always told that being scared was a bad thing, especially in these kinds of situations.

"That depends. As of now, what happens depends on you, but that doesn't mean I don't have a word to go by."

"That's a lame answer."

"_What happened_?"

The question was repeated in a harsher tone, an icy warning glare directed itself at the child with full-force. Deidara scoffed at it. He'd seen worse. Even then, it was probably best to answer the guy anyway. Sasori didn't seem like the type who could wait through a sea of lies.

"Ninja's chased me out of Iwa," The child explained briefly, smiling mentally before the child began to force his eyes to water. Time to test what _this _one was made of. "I-I...I don't know what I did...but they tried to hurt me."

His lip quivered and he whined, blinking more than usual to appear as if he was on the verge of tears. This emotion stirred a reaction with the redhead, who looked momentarily confused and uncomfortable, satisfying the boy's desired result. Deciding to go further, Deidara recalled on the days before, picking and choosing the supposed 'saddest' moments to reveal as he forced the tears to flow. It wasn't hard to cry, just required some manipulation in breathing. Just breathing the wrong way was enough to get tears going. If he made it clear enough he was on the verge of bawling, crying wasn't at all necessary.

Sniffling ensued, hands coming up to his eyes in attempt to rub away the water only heightened the effect. Deidara smiled for a split-second, Sasori would be at his beck and call pretty soon.

Sasori stiffened. "U-um, you okay?"

_Don't say anything,_ Deidara sensed the discomfort his tears were bringing. The redhead made a puzzled sound, slightly panicked in a way that didn't derive from fear. Getting up from his seat, the redhead sat down next to the child, taking the silence as his cue that he was supposed to do something.

"They hurt me..a-and it was hard to get away, an-"

The sudden feeling of an arm wrapped around his torso, pressing the small body to lean against the others in a hug. Head rested against his chest, which was abnormally hard and stiff since it felt as if the blond had just head-butted a wall. _W-what the..._Deidara glanced upwards, trying his best to refrain from snapping right then and there. He didn't like being held and sure as hell didn't feel like it right now. Sasori's eyes remained averted in a poker face, staring at the wall while the boy felt an eye twitch in irritation, panic rising.

"Am I making you feel better?" Sasori muttered.

_Who is this guy!?_ Deidara reminded himself of his current facade, gulping slightly while both arms dropped to the blanket. "...Y-yeah..."

_Twitch..._

_ Twitch..._

_When is this weirdo gonna let go?!_ If anything, the child should have expected this kind of result. A hug wasn't far from what he expected, but this wasn't any hug he'd felt before. If anything, the redhead didn't even look at him, staring straight at the wall as the boy was left to contemplate his next course of action. Well he certainly got pity on his side...but now what?

Suddenly, the hug seemed to tighten. Deidara now squished against the redhead's chest as Sasori continued to lean further towards the bed. The child's eyes widened as he made a grunt of exasperation and extreme annoyance. What the hell was this guy doing now? This was anything but comforting, since the guy preferred to stay quiet and make an already awkward situation even more cringe-worthy.

"Do you feel okay now?"

"...Uh...huh..."


	2. Brat

_(Naruto Shippuden Movie 5 OST Track 6 - Ruffian)_

**Brat**

Morning light poured through the window, a cold breeze entering the room. Sasori sat at his desk, working the puppet limbs he had just started to carve two days ago. Metal parts were running low, so making blades and other steel weapons were becoming a cause for concern. Luckily he wouldn't need to work on that any time soon. _I also need materials...but _that _idea got scrapped pretty quickly..._

Brown eyes directed themselves towards a limb pushed to the corner of the desk. The edges were jagged and rather rough. It had just been carved out so the sanding process hadn't even started. Sasori blinked, well, he wasn't planning on hollowing it out anymore. It'll probably end up as another scrap piece now unless he ended up changing his mind along the line. The thought brought him back to a few hours ago, when it still seemed to be night. That boy he brought in...Deidara. It was probably time to ask. He wasn't sure why he even wanted to do it, but he could try...

Maybe the idea wasn't so bad after all, not as pointless as it seemed. Sasori contemplated for a bit before finally deciding to go through with it. Putting down the pencil and paper, the redhead stood up, pushing his chair backwards by the crooks of his legs. Turning around, he tried to smile and put the question forth gently.

...

The room was completely normal. A cup of what used to be steaming tea he decided to give to the child had been emptied and now toppled carelessly on its side. The futon bed wasn't even folded and put away like it should have been, blanket still messily placed and the clothes and mesh shirt now were absent from the room.

The window was open.

"That...little..." _Brat..._

* * *

"I think I'm lost, un..."

Deidara looked around. People here, people there, there were people everywhere! No exits! Just stands and shops and more stands and shops! The bustling noise of talking didn't help either and being a kid with no adult around, he began to feel a little embarrassed to be wandering alone. His stomach grumbled, and loudly too. Food was everywhere but it wasn't like he could take it. The child began to whine a little, tea wasn't enough if it wasn't obvious.

Having left the inn, Deidara hadn't bothered with telling Sasori. He didn't need that weird guy to take care of him. The boy considered himself perfect capable of taking solo initiative.

Well, no point in just standing around. Deidara weaved through the crowd, pausing as a gap appeared in the mass. A dango shop seemed to be setting up, the owner's back currently turned, a plate of freshly made dango sitting innocently on a plate, delicious sauce glaring in the morning sun.

* * *

Deidara moved his hand blindly over the ledge as the owner was occupied with some customers. He grunted in annoyance when he didn't feel anything on the window ledge that felt even remotely like any kind of food or stick. He peeked out from his hiding place on the other side of the stand, eyes widening at the sight of a plate of with two dango placed right on it right at his fingertips. The owner turned, causing Deidara to quickly retreat back to his hiding place, sweating slightly for he dreaded the idea of getting caught. He waited a few seconds before peeking again warily, the owner had turned again. Seeing his chance, Deidara reached slowly an carefully towards the dango, stomach grumbling again.

Turning on his heel, the boy plopped the dango in his mouth, savouring the sweet taste of the soy sauce. With a blithe look, Deidara casually made his way away from the stand, acting as if the heist never occurred.

He pulled the stick from his mouth, eyes closed in pride. "Heh, suckers..."

"Who's the _sucker_?"

The child froze, familiar with the voice. Slowly, he turned his head, a single drop of sweat trickling down his temple. Sasori stood over him, rice hat giving his face a menacing shadow.

_Oh no..._

"You've got some nerve..."

_WHAP_

* * *

Sasori set the candle onto the scroll, Deidara observing from afar, a swollen bruise visible on his head. The blond grumbled, throwing a glare towards the redhead, caring little if the guy wasn't even intimidated. Anyhow, Sasori had managed to pay for the dango, since it had already been eaten, it was a given. As it seemed, the kindness given to the child after the tearful display no longer was given out. Sasori was aware of the child's true personality now.

"Ow..."

Now, they had returned to the inn, window locked closed in order to prevent another escape. Deidara felt over his bump, throbbing heavily after the fierce chop that he received. The crowd's chatter was muffled by the walls, leaving a silence in the room. The moment the child had returned, Sasori seemed to occupied, pulling a scroll out and laying it on the floor. The redhead hadn't informed him of what he was doing, but if anything, Deidara could easily tell this was no circus trick.

A circle of cryptic symbols and other characters surrounded the white candle, unlit with a blackened burnt stub. Deidara didn't bother asking, his question would be answered with time.

Holding a hand out, Sasori made the half-ram seal. The child narrowed his eyes, hand still rested on his head as he sat opposite of the other. _A ninja huh? Great..._

...

"Damn, what a waste..." Sasori cursed, "That was my only one."

"What is it? What happened?" The blond blinked. No events ensued, not a single thing caught his eye. If it were a jutsu, something would have happened already but not in this case. From what it looked like, either something went wrong or the redhead had made a mistake.

Putting away the candle, the scroll was rolled up and slid into his sleeve. Sasori made a pessimistic expression. "None of your concern. It just didn't work is all."

"That was a jutsu right? What was supposed to happen?"

"If it worked, the candle would be lit. However this time, it didn't light up. Something went wrong, and you don't need to know what that is."

_I've never seen that jutsu, must be something advanced..._Deidara leaned in with curiosity, settling his gaze onto the candle to imagine it light up on its own. Finishing up the vision, the child reminded himself of something else he wanted to ask. The entire reason he left in the first place. The child's face grew solemn, warily staring out the window into the blue sky above.

"This isn't Earth Country is it?"

Sasori paused, replying by shaking his head, "You're in an unnamed country, not ruled over by ninja. Why do you ask?"

"You're a ninja. I know now, but you don't wear a headband."

The redhead sat himself down on the desk chair, passively readying himself for the conversation ahead. "I don't need one."

"Why not?"

"I don't belong to a single village, I'm not loyal to any of them. I live on my own accord. A rogue."

Deidara froze, a realization coming over him. "Maste-someone...told me that people like you are dangerous..."

Sasori chuckled in amusement. "Maybe, maybe not. How do you know what that _someone_ says is true?"

"E-erm, well..." He stuttered.

"No need to worry brat, as long as you don't get in my way, I won't bite." A small smile graced the his lips. "Well, you said it yourself: you don't have a place to go back to. I'll ask you something else however, do you have somewhere or someone you plan to _go_ to?"

Deidara shook his head. He wasn't exactly too clear on why the guy seemed to keep asking these questions. In all honestly, he'd prefer that the other not pry into it at all.

"I see." The ninja was silent for a few moments, head bowed in thought. "If that's the case...say I let you go to do whatever you want –we go our separate paths after this –what would you do?"

A humming sound filled the room, eyes directed towards the ceiling. The child tapped his chin, making a face with both arms crossed over his chest. "I guess I'd go eat first."

"With no money?"

"Oh yeah..." Deidara sighed.

"So you're lost huh?"

"I'm not lost!" Deidara snapped. "I would...um..."

The boy trailed off, leaving Sasori in a state of amusement. After a minute of silence, the blond flopped his head, giving out a loud groan of defeat. In his place, not much could be done. Only being a child, few people could take him seriously as well as the fact he currently didn't possess any money and fewer ways of earning it. Being a runaway as well meant...well, Sasori already knew how that would turn out.

"You're a runaway, rogue by default. In short what will happen in your scenario is that you'll wander for a bit and starve to death or resort to a life of thievery and fearing others. If your lucky and survive, you'll be tracked down eventually by Hunter nins and when that happens..." He paused for dramatic effect, enjoying the torment. "They'll kill you and let crows eat your body. Kid or not, your just weak prey."

"Ugh." Deidara gulped but covered it up with a determined face. "I'm not weak! I can totally kill a ninja, or whatever that hunt-thing is!"

He earned a skeptical stare. "Is that so? Well then..."

Sasori's hand grabbed an item off the desk, quickly aiming for the boy's eye. Deidara frowned and tilted his head, carving knife slicing through his blond bang before planting itself firmly into the wall behind him with a loud 'thud', vibrating on impact.

_Impressive._ Hand still outstretched, the redhead smiled and lowered his arm. "Nice instincts, though I exaggerated my movements to make it easy to dodge."

"I told you! I'm not weak!" Deidara repeated sternly.

"That's good. Makes it easier for the both of us."

The child raised a brow. "Huh?"

"Out here, the best bet you have is a strong backing, some sort of protection. People who work solo are the most vulnerable. While the weaker survive in groups, even the strong get caught, especially when they're on their own. You understand?"

"But, you're on your own right? I don't see anyone with you." The child gazed about the room. "Doesn't that mean you're gonna get caught someday?"

"Not necessarily. You see, I'm not alone."

"Really?" Deidara leaned in, suddenly interested.

"First off though, even if I were on my own, I'll tell you right now, I'm not gonna get caught. There are some people out there who are just too strong, and never get caught."

"Woah..." The boy made an O-shape with his mouth as he clapped sarcastically. "Oh! That means you too!" Deidara lidded his eyes, tone suddenly becoming flat, "Amazing..."

"There's an organization I joined. The Akatsuki. Ring a bell?"

The blond thought for a moment to only come up with nothing. "Uh-uh."

"Well, I'll just tell you one thing. It's an organization that protects its members and I'm part of it so I'm safe for the most part. _You_ however, are not part of an organization but I'm still taking care of you aren't I?"

Sasori averted his gaze, eyes softening. "I...can make an offer with you..."

* * *

The answer came without a second thought. With no where else to go and having been thoroughly convinced of his hopeless situation, Deidara had agreed to the offer however begrudgingly to stay and travel with him. The redhead observed passively, watching as the child poked and prodded with a large tarped object in the corner of the room, three times the size of the tiny blond boy. He blinked, noticing that the little brat had had enough of his ignorance, curiosity taking over when his hand slipped under the cloth that covered the giant object in hopes of getting a peek.

Deidara halted movement, putting down the dark-coloured cloth to glance at Sasori while sitting on the floor.

"So, what is it? This thing." He gestured towards the object.

"It's a puppet." Sasori replied dully and made his way over to grab the cloth. Pulling it off to reveal a gigantic human-like figure. Arms and legs outspread, the puppet laid on its stomach, larger than normal torso uncharacteristic of the human-like body. The head tilted to its side with dead eyes, segmented mouth agape.

A gasp reached his ears. Sasori gave his puppet a glance before gazing over to the child, expression faltering at the sight.

Deidara's mouth opened slightly in awe, single eye wide with the usual sparkle that seemed to shine even in dim light. Eyebrows raised, a child-like air arose when he spoke, "It's so..._real_..."

"I'm a puppeteer. I made Hiruko this way for transport and protection. He's also my weapon."

"You _made _it?!"

Sasori blinked, unprepared for the ecstatic response. Deidara practically bounced on the spot, staring intently at the redhead with a look that demanded attention. The look definitely boosted his ego, the sudden interest taken in his work easily swelling his pride slightly. Looking back to Hiruko, the puppeteer decided there was no harm in gloating a little.

"It's my art. I create puppets to perform with in battle as well as serve me for convenience. I constantly work on puppets and add them to my collection. If I add up all three levels of my collection not including the works-in-progress, I'd currently have 199 marionettes at my command. When I carve my puppets, I make sure every single one is nearly flawless, the very image of perfection."

"_Art!?_ I can make art too!" Deidara reached for his pocket with enormous enthusiasm, face falling into a frown however only a second later. "Um...did you find a pouch with me?"

"A pouch?" Sasori murmured, recalling the days before. "Hm...oh. Hold on."

The redhead walked over to dresser that held the candle on top. Pulling out the top drawer, he retrieved a small bag, brown tassel tightened at the top. Returning to the boy, he dropped the pouch into his hands. It was a small pouch, containing clay from what the puppet master had found from rummaging through it. He had found it strange that a pouch containing clay would have been one of the items in the child's possession, much less the only item.

Making himself comfortable, Deidara put down the pouch and grasped his glove excitedly. He had only managed to pull it up high enough to reveal the corner of his palm before stopping, making a small whining sound before slowly letting go. Deidara gave the redhead a vigilant glance, simply picking up the pouch to fish out a small chunk of his clay.

"It's not the best I can do, but here's what it looks like." Deidara molded the clay close into his body, obstructing the puppeteer's view with his hair.

It took a while, but the eventually the boy finished. Sasori had sat himself down onto the floor with the child, testing Hiruko's hand as he waited. The blond held the sculpture up to view, a confident air about him.

"What do you think? It's not my best."

The puppeteer took his word as modesty, ignoring the disappointed tone of voice to stare down at the sculpture of what appeared to be a clay spider. Instead of a realism approach, it seemed to him that the child had a little bit of a style going for it. Four legs sported from each side symmetrically, bound to a large sphere-shaped body with two holes poked into the front in what seemed to be eyes. Two studs stuck out of the front, representing mandibles.

Well, it wasn't some academy drawing at least. It even seemed to have some skill placed into it, a good sign of things to come be it the artist decided to continue developing in their craft. It was simple, but Sasori reminded himself of his first puppets which were also painfully simple. Considering his struggle with faces –as a young child – he used to just draw a line in marker and call it a nose.

Immediately, Sasori could make an essay-long critique, but decided against it. Deidara was only a child after all, surely he couldn't expect too much from him.

Deidara waited anxiously, every second becoming more torturous under the judgemental gaze of the other. Having never met another artist, the boy felt an impulse to impress. What would Sasori say? With puppet art of such detail and finesse, his own works paled in comparison.

"It's good, for someone your age...which reminds me." Sasori looked up, "How old are you?"

It was pretty serious question on his part. Having conversed with the child for two days straight, the redhead had noticed that Deidara seemed to speak on a higher level than what most would expect a boy his age would be capable of. He wasn't distracted easily nor did he turn a blind eye to even the smallest things. The kid talked big, seemingly trying to intimidate with every comeback he made bluntly and with a hint of misplaced courage. However, his stare and demeanor when not raising his voice, told him something completely different. The way he structured his sentences, the calmness demonstrated even when approached with a threat, the attentiveness in the boy seemed beyond his years.

"Seven. I'm gonna be eight in two months."

_Seven? He talks like he's ten, or twelve._

The boy stared at his hands, as if looking past the gloves to the things beneath the fabric. Spider sculpture peeking out from within the pouch.

"Something wrong?"

Deidara snapped his attention back to Sasori, quickly shaking his head.

"I couldn't get those gloves off. Are you hiding a wound? The clotting of blood might be what's causing them to stick."

"No, there's no wound."

"Look, you might get infected. I may have to cut them off or-"

"There's no cut okay! I'm not bleeding! I can move fine!" Deidara snarled angrily, flexing both hands in front of redhead's face to prove it.

_He's hiding something._ Sasori chose not the pry. Right now, the boy didn't seem to trust him that much yet. As time goes on, that trust would either whittle away or grow immensely. The best result would be the latter, and prying seemed to create a negative effect on people. He had no reason to think differently for a little kid.

He would have sighed if he could. "At least wash the gloves. Not a very pretty sight at the moment."

* * *

Sasori waited outside of the bathrooms. Despite being for the public, the kid had still insisted on having him not enter. It was drawing close to the sleep-hours, so the bathroom was scarcely occupied anyways. There would be no one inside and Sasori would stand alone in the corridor. The lights had begun to shut off, large sections of the hallway blackening by the second. Darkness engulfed him, a grumble being the only thing that the redhead responded with. Deidara was taking his time, that was for sure.

A door slid open allowing light to spill into the hallway. Chatter caught the attention of the Akatsuki member, quickly taking interest. Clattering within the staff room indicated a kitchen, muffling the female voices. He could only pick up some words.

"Died...yesterday...close down the inn...temporary..."

"...I...scared...when...leave..."

_Hm? What's going on?_ Pressing himself to the wall, Sasori inched closer to the door.

"I don't even want to talk about this, what if they're listening to us? They might kill us too!"

"No way. Nobody liked him, it was probably some sort of grudge. As long as we keep doing our jobs, we should be fine."

"I'm not hanging the laundry! No!"

"Yeah, I know."

_Someone got killed?_ The puppeteer leaned in closer, hoping to eavesdrop some more.

"Sasori?"

Retreating from the door, the redhead spied out Deidara standing outside the bathroom. His hands were cleaned, gloves folded neatly and held in in his hand. It was dark so he couldn't make out any details, but from what it looked like, his hands looked relatively normal.

Deidara cocked his head. "What are you doing?"

"Nothing." The reply came immediately. Sasori passed the child in the corridor. "Come on."

"At least tell me what's going on..." Deidara sulked.

Returning to their room, the child let Sasori enter first, eyes following him. The redhead pushed a chair back, sitting at his desk once again. The peace of the room gave the child a strange feeling, as nostalgia perhaps, for quieter times. How long had it been since he had been in a quiet room with someone?

The child approached the other at the desk, peeking by his shoulder to his work. A paper was laid flat on the surface, plenty of tiny words and diagram-like pictures were sketched into the space. The child found himself marvelling at the skill and beauty of the sketches, despite their rough appearance. It was a human body, however the limbs seemed to appear more as ovals and spheres than organic shapes.

"Hah..."

A small gasp escaped his lips, quickly catching Sasori's attention. When at work, he tended towards completely absorbing himself into it. Brown eyes stared at the child, memorizing the features of his face and imprinting them into his mind. He had never let anyone look over his shoulder like that, not since...

"What's that?"

The thought didn't finish, distracted by Deidara pointing towards something pushed to the corner of his desk. Sasori glanced over. "That's a leg."

_That's a small leg..._The child furrowed his eyebrows. "Say, Sasori?"

"Hm?"

"You didn't tell me where you came from."

"Do want me to tell you?"

"Yeah!" Deidara chirped.

The puppeteer turned back to his sketch, deciding it couldn't hurt too much to explain a little. Recently he had noticed that his mind had begun to wander into his past more often. He didn't want to remember, for it only distracted him from his goals. Even then, this seemed like a good excuse to himself to think freely. He felt as if he needed the break.

"I was born in Sunagakure. Sunagakure resides in the land of wind. I was born in a desert."

"Desert? Isn't it hard to live in a desert?" Deidara asked curiously.

"What makes you think that?"

"Well, in a desert there aren't any rivers or lakes. And I thought only lizards, snakes and bugs could live there."

"The people from Sunagakure have lived for generations in that place. They have their methods to support a village."

The child seemed to cease with the questions, seemingly satisfied. A silence settled, letting a blanket of relief fall over the puppeteer until the next question was shot.

"Why did you leave?"

His pencil halted, hovering over the paper. Sasori stared at the paper, no longer able to read the words as he pondered the question. Deidara blinked, wondering why it was taking so long to answer. Promptly, the redhead lifted his head and turned to look at the child. Letting the pencil drop and roll on the paper, Sasori raised his hand over the boy's head.

Deidara's eyes widened, quickly shutting them to prepare for the impact. He had asked the wrong question, and now he was gonna get it.

_Pat_

The blond opened his eyes in fear, looking upwards in surprise to see Sasori rest his hand on his head instead of chopping it painfully. Palm rested lightly as the Akatsuki member made a small smile, "People have their reasons for doing things, okay?"

Blood rushed to the boy's face, quickly retreating from the hand with flushed cheeks of embarrassment. Huffing, Deidara crossed his arms angrily. Apparently, Sasori was allowed to barrage him with questions and the boy couldn't enquire one of his own.

"Hyp-Hypo-..."

"Hypocrite?"

"WHATEVER!"


	3. Lub-dub

_**Lub-dub**_

_The darkness was suffocating. He couldn't feel himself move, the only movement he was aware of was the light rise and fall of his chest, a sign of steady breathing. His heart beat, with every thrum he felt a shiver travel down his spine. A light illuminated his back but was short lived as the door behind him shut. His back was left to the darkness, he still did not move._

_**Lub-dub**_

_He looked ahead, the pitch darkness retreated as two flames lit themselves. The duo created a soft yellow glow, washing over a stand between them. A large scroll about half his size sat on the stand. The edges were an emerald green lined with golden yellow. The middle of the scroll had a word written on it in black ink._

_**Lub-dub**_

_**'**__**石**__**' – Stone**_

_**Lub-dub**_

_They next thing he knew, he had suddenly gotten closer to the scroll. It lay open on the ground, cryptic characters and kanji written on it but the message was all too clear. _

_**Lub-dub**_

_**'Those who use this Jutsu will can never return to normal.'**_

_**Lub-dub**_

_Without him willing it, his arms had moved into position. Silently in the darkness, he carefully worked through hand seals. He had no idea why he was doing this or what he was doing, his mind was blank, simply observing as the scene played out. He ended it with a backwards Ram hand seal, instead of the right hand over the left, the left was over the right. His hands unravelled and slammed onto the scroll. Nothing happened..._

_**Lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub**_

_He looked puzzled, lifting his arms as he glanced around. Nothing had changed, was it all a joke? _

_**Lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub**_

_Something moved in his shoulder, it wriggled. He felt a second do the exact same thing on his other shoulder. At the same time, the two things burrowed down his arms, he couldn't see it, just feel as the foreign being started down his forearms. His eyes moved from his right to his left, switching between the two as a dreaded feeling started to well up in his chest. Unfortunately for him, that welling in his chest was not just fear. _

_**Lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub**_

_It tore into his palms, trying to tear out of his skin. It wasn't long before he felt them tear his skin open, revealing rows of human teeth and a long tongue protrude his palms. It made a gasp, though only able to make primitive sounds. His eyes widened in shock as blood splattered onto his face. He could taste it, his own blood, but why? It hadn't gotten into his mouth. He stared at his new body parts, the mouths had tongues covered in blood. The taste buds had already connected to his nervous system, he could taste what it tasted. It was warm and wet, tasted rusty, like iron._

_**Lub-dub**_

_Too shocked and horrified to speak, it was as if something had caught in his throat. Blood spilled from his hands, staining the open scroll. It took more than a few seconds for him to realize that something else had begun to tear at his chest. All attention was directed away from his hands as he started to feel his chest, ignoring the strange feeling of his new body parts. There was something there, wriggling, like his arms. Knowing what was going to happen he tried to stop it, prevent it was tearing open his chest. Agonizing seconds passed as it closer and closer to the surface, before it finally broke free._

_**Lub...**_

* * *

"Un..."

Deidara opened his eyes, hand held to his face as he snuggled into his blankets. The beating in his chest had increased ten-fold, sweat covering his upper body. He made a steady breath, attempting to calm the harsh thrumming that seemed to tear through his bones. Dream still clear in his mind, it annoyed him. Less of a dream, more of a memory.

"Looks like you finally woke up. I let you sleep in for a bit."

The child kept his body still, raising his head above the pillow to see Sasori walking in from the door. Closing it behind him, the redhead strolled into the room.

"Morning, brat."

"Argh!"

"Hm?" Sasori looked over his shoulder. Deidara sat upright on the futon bed, displeased expression written all over his face.

"Stop calling me 'brat'!"

The puppeteer smirked, turning away casually to work at the pile of scrolls on the desk, "Considering what you pulled yesterday, I have every right to call you that."

"What did I even do? I just went outside for a bit."

"Without telling me? Out the window?"

"Yeah."

Sasori twitched, "Just eat some breakfast and we'll get going."

* * *

The festival looked to be over, leaving empty and disheartened feeling with the boy. He never really got to attend a festival or any kind of celebration. The very idea that he had arrived just when it was setting up only to leave when it ended without checking it out very much in between, Deidara felt like he was missing out.

Sasori seemed to be dealing with things back at the front of the inn, the child waiting near the entrance. He gazed out the door, observing the stands being pulled apart and put away as well as the costumes and outfits being discarded as the entertainers acted once again like normal humans going about their day.

It was early morning meaning the skies would still be dark. Clear of clouds, the stars twinkled as usual, however less beautifully than the child remembered. Already, sunrise had just begun, staining the silk of night in a brighter colour. Sasori had thought it best they leave when few people were out, as to leave less tracks.

A shuffling sound caught his attention, glancing back towards the giant puppet. Deidara stared at the old and wrinkled face of Hiruko, the sheer grandeur of the work amazed him, but also served to irritate him a little. As a fellow artist, the child felt the need to admire the work of superiors, but still felt a tinge of jealousy. He had seen Sasori work at his puppets at the inn, so he knew perfectly well by now that the puppeteer carved and painted his own work. Deidara felt his hand twitch, a involuntary movement of the palm caused him to clamp that hand shut. He had started a whole new life, one with this...Sasori guy. Being with him had brought the child closer to his own craft, having to mold and work at in order to push the memories to the back of his mind. This was everything he'd ever wanted. He could travel and see new places with Sasori as well as enjoy the comforts of being able to discuss freely with little restraint about art and how to do certain things. He was free.

Deidara clenched his hand harder, causing a pained jerk to tear at his palm. Almost free. Iwagakure was behind him now, so no need trying to get at it. He didn't regret it, not his actions at least. Everyone else was to blame.

Hiruko approached the child, eyeing him as he spoke in deep tone, "There's a bounty station just east of here. We'll be steering clear of any buildings."

Most would feel scared or intimidated, but the child felt none of those feelings. He hadn't the slightest idea why but when Sasori entered that puppet, his voice would suddenly turn into that of an old cranky man, though far deeper than that of which the boy was used to. The very tone of it plus his outward appearance made his speech pattern seem far more irritable than it normally did. Considering how many times Deidara had been hit up-side the head as a 'punishment' for misbehaviour, he already knew that the puppeteer was already pretty irritable as his normal self. To see if of an old man seemed only more fitting, but it only sparked a boldness within him.

"Why? What's that?" Deidara asked.

"Usually I wouldn't have to but I'd rather not have a run-in while we're there. Especially now that you're around. We're going to have to take the long-way to our destination," Sasori seemed to hiss.

Deidara caught the annoyance at his mention. Oh, so now the puppeteer didn't want him around or something? He didn't care much for whatever reputation the redhead had. Sasori surely was bragging about his combat skills. _This weirdo can't be that great..._

"Bounty stations are places where bounty hunters exchange their catches for money. They're like hunter nin except they don't dispose of the body."

Deidara blinked, "Oh! So, you don't want to get caught right?"

Hiruko stilled, "Yeah..."

Sasori's eyes lidded within the puppet. If only that were the reason, than it would be easier to explain. But at the moment, it wasn't a run-in with bounty hunters that got him on edge about wandering near. He just wasn't fond of reunions.

* * *

"_Atchoo!_"

"Got a cold Mr. Kakuzu?" The bounty exchange master turned to the masked man across the dark room. It wreaked heavily of corpse stink, but the people there have gotten long used to it over the years. Kakuzu sniffled and pulled back his mask a little to rub his nose.

"I'm not sick, I'd know if I were."

The man smirked. "They say you sneeze when someone's talking about you."

Kakuzu scrunched his face in disapproval. "Tch! I don't believe in stuff like that."

* * *

"Sasori of the Red Sand?" Deidara repeated with feigned interest.

"I used to be rather infamous. Few others could compete."

The child groaned. For a while, he felt like the only reason that the puppeteer even made the offer to stay with him was only so he had someone to brag to. If anything, the redhead's lack of composure in uncomfortable situations only dampened his reputation in the child's eyes. An infamous ninja from the Sunagakure, one who wielded his puppets and coated the desert sand red in their blood. Hah! He didn't seem all that great to him. He called his craft an art and considered himself an artist; those two things were the only aspects that got the child's attention.

"Never heard of you..," Deidara rolled his eyes, speaking bluntly.

Hiruko paused, causing the child to walk straight into its hind end. The blond stumbled back, immediately pissed at the sudden halt.

"I don't expect you to, a member of your generation wouldn't know of the past."

"History is boring," The child replied dully.

"What happened to that kid that cried a few nights ago?" Hiruko shuffled on, dragging his cloak along the dirt path.

"I was faking okay?"

"Now you're beginning to act like a brat."

"S-orry!" Deidara exclaimed, voice laced with sarcasm.

Sasori ignored the child, letting the conversation –if he could call it that –drop. He knew it would happen at some point. The kid would comfortable where he is and start getting cocky. Hopefully, their destination would drain the child of his energy, leaving him quiet.

Glancing upwards, the puppeteer noted how the sky was brightening considerably, giant star peaking over the mountains in the distance. They had walked for a couple of hours now, making a decent ways away from their last village. It would take a while to get further north, about a two days if things went fine. But then again –Sasori reminded himself of the brat following him –like this plus the unfortunate meeting he might be greeted by on his usual route. His best bet was to make a curve around the Bounty Station in order to get there.

"Hurry up, sunrise is almost finished."

"I get it," Deidara replied sternly. He hummed for a few moments and hesitantly enquired, "Where are we going again?"

"A village famous for it's art materials, as well as a _graveyard._"

Deidara made a puzzled sound.


	4. Master Sasori Part 1

**Master Sasori Part 1**

"Sasori-"

"Don't tell me you're tired already..."

"Actually-"

"What?"

"...Never mind," The child pouted, swatting away irritably at the low branches and bushes. Deidara had already complained before about not taking the main path, the path where perhaps there would not be so much foliage.

"Where are we going again?"

"The Village of Ink, _Sumi no Sato_. Artisans gather there to use the plentiful amounts of materials to support their own businesses. I myself am going to get some work done as well."

Deidara blinked with sudden interest. "Oh, so you're an artis...san? Artisan sounds like artist."

"Well, artists do _gather _here. An artisan is similar, a creator of some sort, a craft worker who makes things by hand from scratch. Artisan can be artists, usually, the two are considered the same thing. The difference is, an artisan's work is practical." Hiruko's body pushed by the last wave of trees and bushes, bending branches opposite of the unsuspecting child's direction.

"Eh? So there are artist-GAH!"

Sasori found himself chuckling as the boy got a face full of leaves. With a red face, Deidara tore through the low lying branches, stomping on them afterwards.

"It's just up ahead, I guarantee you."

"Better be..." The blonde muttered. Hiruko continued uphill, eventually making it out of the wood. He paused, and swung the large head of his creation towards his travel companion.

"Come on, we're already there."

Deidara looked up, swelling with curiosity and excitement as he rushed up the hill, ignoring the branches that blocked his path. Soon, the shadowy forest gave way to a sunny cliff side, revealing a gigantic outlook that left him in awe.

A round, fenced off village sat within a wide curve of the cliffs, acting like a pen of some sorts, blocking off all flat-land paths to enter; save for the paths leading outwards of the gates, splitting in two towards the cliff side outside the palisade. These long paths rounded the village and ended off towards the coast, disappearing at the sea where it was too far to specify where the paths lead. Sea water sparkled beautifully with sail boats lined along the shore of the port. Seabirds squawked loudly at each other, picking at stolen fish and leftovers.

A salty yet soothing breeze seemed to funnel into the village, giving Deidara a small jitter in his nerves.

It was beautiful. _So that's the sea..._

Meanwhile, Sasori had already begun his slow descend down the steps. Upon realizing that there were no tiny footsteps following him, he turned back.

"What are you doing? Hurry up."

The child stirred, snapping out of his daze to look at the puppet master with a large grin that was barely contained.

"It's so big!"

"What of it? A lot of village's are big." The redhead raised a brow.

"No! I mean the sea! It's bigger than the village!" Deidara raised his arms in an attempt to show Sasori how big it seemed to him.

"The sea huh? What's so remarkable?"

The child giggled and took a glance at the sea before running down the stairs attached to the cliffside, giving Sasori a small scare since it was dangerous to run on stairs. Inside Hiruko, his hand was already raised halfway of whipping out the tail to catch Deidara if he tripped and fell due to his own reckless behaviour.

"Don't run. You'll fall and get hurt." Sasori warned sternly.

The boy paused at a platform at the corner of the zig-zag stairs, huffing at the other. "I'm fine, geeze."

Sasori furrowed his eyebrows in annoyance at the boy's cheekiness. Carefully, he descended down, occasionally demanding for the child to wait, only to be met with reluctance. Hiruko wasn't made for speed, that's why he installed the scorpion tail. If put at too much of an angle, it would flip over on it's shell, and probably wave it's limbs around like a turtle until it could get it's tail to flip it back on it's feet.

No creation was truly perfect.

Reaching the bottom of the steps, he was met with a rather pissed blond. Impatiently sitting on the side railing with an icy look.

"Took you long enough." Deidara hopped off the railing, sneering at Sasori with fake maturity. He pointed his thumb at the cliff, "So, what's with the bones?"

Hiruko took a glance back at the stairs, gazing upon the gigantic skeleton long dead on the ground. It's segmented spine lay on it's side, ribs half buried into the earth while parts of the mossy bone structure have caved in. The animal seemed to have died right next to the cliff, for some bones were shattered and fractured where there would have been an impact. The skull was not present, the spine ending to an abrupt stop. Whatever it was, it had long claws, for only one limb was still present, sheltered by the ribs of the chest cavity.

"A giant badger, from the Mountain's Graveyard."

"Graveyard?"

"Surely you've seen it if you payed attention, the bones in the distance to the east of here."

Deidara cocked his head, "Yeah, I saw those. You also said something about it before."

"Before the village settled, this place was home to large summoning animals. Due to some event, they all died, and their bones are scattered a ways from here. We call this place, the Mountain's Graveyard."

"Anyways, I don't really care about the graveyard. We'll only be here for a while."

Arriving at the gates, they met the guards. Twins apparently, they both wore eye patches on opposite eyes, one wore it on his left while the other wore one on his right. They were dark-skinned and burly, each one wearing a grin as they greeted Sasori with familiarity. The kid could help but stare at the swords sheathed by their sides, they almost appeared to be pirates.

"Master Sasori! It's been a while since your last visit! Running low on supplies eh?" One dipped his head politely.

"I just need to forge some metal parts, something I can't do without the tools in the blacksmith's shop. I am down by half however."

"_Master?_" Deidara spat, interrupting the short conversation, "Why do you call _him _'master'? You're adults right?"

One guard gave the kid a incredulous look, scanning the child head to toe, "Hm? You brought a little kid with you did ya?"

The other guard spoke up, "What? You suddenly like kids or something? Thought you hated brats."

Hiruko didn't reply immediately, closing it's half-dead eyes and sighed, "This one's...different."

"Different? How?"

Hiruko's eyes shot open at the enquiry, dark look imminent on his face, "I have my reasons."

Both brothers seemed to pick up the undertone, backs straightening as their faces paled, suddenly seeming rather weary with a hint of terror. Deidara noticed it it the moment the redhead ended his sentence, the way he emphasized that he 'had his reasons'. It was strange, the boy had never seen that side of Sasori yet. Even those who seemed friendly towards him dared not to avert their gaze.

Of course, Deidara was not one to straightaway submit himself if he recognized another as more powerful. To most he knew, to see this particular face would have silenced anyone else; shut their mouths and whatnot in order to suck up to Sasori just to keep their tails. To Deidara, it felt more like a challenge. To him, just cause someone was 'superior' didn't mean they had instantly earned his respect.

Respect wasn't free, not the kind of respect Deidara gave, "What's up with these guys?"

"Hmph. I've wasted enough time..," The redhead grumbled, moving Hiruko into the village.

Seeing no resistance from the eye-patch pair, Deidara felt reassured they were allowed to enter and followed the puppeteer in. Eyeing the red cloud at Hiruko's rump, the child felt a blast of nostalgia hit him, causing his composure to falter slightly. His blue eyes softened. That word...

_Master Sasori huh?_

* * *

_**"Sumi Village?"**_

_**"Yeah, it's just ahead."**_

_**"That old lady at the inn, you sure?"**_

_**"Blonde hair, blue eyes, a long bang covering the left side of his face. No doubt about it."**_

_**"Okay then, but didn't she say that he was traveling with someone?"**_

_**"Does it matter? The kid was only a teenager according to her. Besides, even if they're a ninja, Explosion Corps Jounin are no pushovers."**_

* * *

A hand flew to his arm, causing the boy to stop abruptly in his path. Deidara winced and applied pressure over the bandage, searing pain striking him at an untimely moment.

"Something wrong?"

The child looked up to be met with Sasori's sleeve. The puppeteer looked down on him, a hint of concern sensed within the question. Near the entrance, Hiruko had been discarded as to walk normally among the crowd. Deidara had decided to keep close as to not get lost in the mass of people.

"It...hurts a little."

"Just don't move it too much and I'll look at it later. For now, we're going to be heading over to a friend of mine's."

Though the redhead didn't take much appreciation into his surroundings, Deidara felt he couldn't get enough of it. One moment, he was looking at a dog being walked by its owner and the second, he just had to get a good look at the store they were passing that sold colorful paints in every colour that Deidara could imagine. He heard some talking and turned his head back the other way, glancing at another shop that sold beautiful artwork, one that caught his eye was a painting of a rocky spiral mountain resembling the cone-towers in Iwa. He stopped for a second to have a better look, gazing down at the price, eyes bulging to the size of dinner-plates.

_200,000 ryo! That's as much a B-rank mission! _He exclaimed mentally, his mouth agape in shock at the price.

The puppeteer turned to Deidara, finding him in a locked stare with some painting in a shop nearby. He looked strangely at him.

"Hey, what're you looking at?" He asked.

"That picture's two-hundred thousand? Isn't that a lot?"

"Paintings always cost a lot. Come on." Sasori gestured for him to follow.

Deidara looked at Sasori, surprised to see his lack of reaction the hellishly high price of a picture. In fear of being left behind, he nodded and followed closely, coming to puppet master's side.

They came to a curtain area, this one was different from the other places, he could tell. The people who walked around seemed harder at work here, their faces were more serious and they carried around wooden objects. Some workmen were carrying large bags and other's carried several scrolls on their backs. Deidara gulped, feeling out of place he moved closer to Sasori.

"Hm?" Sasori grunted, gazing down at the child. Deidara was clinging closely to his arm, pulling at his sleeve. Looking up, the very same boy scowled and backed off from the puppeteer.

Lifting an arm, he patted the child on the head, causing him to look up at him curiously. He smiled in a smug manner before continuing forward at a pace the kid could follow. They approached a shop that was packed with boards and logs of wood. The prices seemed to range from 5,000 ryo to 300,000 ryo. Looking into a corner, he could see a small stack that was priced at 500,000.

"Master Sasori! You haven't come to the shop in ages now!" A large buff man carrying a a large board greeted them. His face perked at the sight of his new visitors, dropping the wood with a loud clack on the floor. The bulky man walked out of the shop and put a hand to shield his face from the sun.

"Where've you been?"

Sasori's eyes remained averted from the man, searching eyes looking over the shop, "It was only eight months, quit acting like it's been years."

"Oh it's been over half a year now," The man remarked.

"What a mess..."

Deidara stood at the entrance to watch as Sasori walked deeper into the shop, approaching a stack of cardboard boxes in the back, each labelled with a set of numbers. The child looked doubtfully at the burly man. Why had he called Sasori 'master' of all things? Why did the guards call him master? None of them seemed to be artists so the very reason that they used the phrase alluded Deidara. Sasori wasn't that powerful. Deidara found respect hard to give, especially after the cringe-worthy embrace he received.

Sasori busied himself with the stacks, murmuring numbered codes that the child found uninteresting. The redhead turned to look at the other, exchanging some words. The boy caught the shop-owner's name. Daiku, apparently.

"Found it."

"Found what?" Deidara asked.

Sasori pulled the box out of the pile, into an empty space into the light of the workshop. Bits of dust launched into the air as the box was moved, causing him to try fan away the dust with his hand.

"It's been over half a year. Don't be surprised that it's collecting dust." Daiku mentioned, seeing the redhead's obvious annoyance with the dust cloud.

"You haven't even maintained it. This whole pile's collecting dust. When did you last clean this place out?" Sasori made a weak glare at the other.

The worker scratched the back of his head, thinking back into the year. "Geeze, I've been so busy with work I never really thought of it. I think it was...six months? I think."

"Clean it out today, no excuses." He ordered.

"Okay, okay."

Meanwhile, Deidara had pulled out a lump of clay to work at. Plopping onto one of the high stools that were conveniently placed by the work tables. He had already finished the bird but he wanted to make it look real. Make the feathers but found it hard since the feathers looked stiff on the bird. He would wait things out as Sasori did his own thing.

He was disturbed when he heard footsteps draw closer, pausing to gaze over to whom it may be. Sasori was stood behind him, a bit of his cloak was in the sunlight but everything from his hands up was shadowed. The redhead nodded, causing the boy to quickly squish the bird in his hands and return it to the pouch before hopping off the stool. Making his way deeper into the shop, he gave the Akatsuki member a questionable look.

"Help me carry these." Sasori said, immediately dropping some wood into Deidara's arms. The boy stumbled back before catching himself and steadying. He looked down to see 3 blocks of dark coloured wood.

"Eh? Why do _I _have to carry them?" Deidara protested.

The redhead picked up the box after ripping off the label. "You wanted to come right? Make yourself useful and help out."

Deidara glared at Sasori, however weakly. The puppeteer raised a brow at him before continuing past the boy to the front of the shop. Deidara huffed and arched his back, the wood was heavy, more of a reason he didn't want to drop it. He grit his teeth, glaring at the other with a face that was a mix between confusion and anger. He gazed over, watching as Sasori paid Daiku for the wood. Handing over the Ryo while holding the box with the other. It was obvious that he was holding the heavier load, but he looked completely fine. He wasn't even putting any energy into holding that box, and that thing looking one-third the size of Sasori. _How does he do that? Like he's not effected at all. This stuff is heavy and he's not even putting an effort into it!_

"The shop's been pretty empty recently. No one really stays long," Daiku tried to put the sentence forth in a friendly manner.

"Another reason to clean up. This mess is repelling customers. Do yourself a favour." He advised.

Daiku sighed, combing his fingers through his short hair. "Fine."The two nodded towards eachother before the redhead stepped out of the shop with the box. Deidara followed hastily, trying to catch up until he had reached Sasori's side. As they walked, the people around them gave the two several expressions. Some expressions went from looks of admiration to looks of opposition. Sasori didn't seem bothered by this, rather he walked through with a straight face Deidara had no idea how he kept up all the time. Sure, he had some expression but they usually didn't stray far from his neutral look. It bothered Deidara, there was something unnatural about it. Something he couldn't quite put his finger on.

"Your face is weird."

"What?" Sasori glowered at the boy.

The child turned his head nonchalantly, shrugging off the glare. "Just saying. It is."

"What exactly makes my face _weird_?" The redhead tried to push an apology out Deidara.

"It's stiff."

"Stiff?" He repeated.

"Yeah, stiff."

"What do you mean by stiff?"

"Like it's made of rock or something."

"My _face _is not a _rock, _brat." Sasori growled at the boy who simply zoned out.

"Looks like it is." The blonde shrugged a second time.

Sasori stopped walking and twitched.

"Why you little..."

* * *

Sumi no Sato, didn't think much of it. Being dragged around by the redhead in such a manner, Deidara had put little thought into where they were going, nor did he really care anymore. The wood had been sealed away in a scroll for later use. Deidara felt annoyed the that Sasori hadn't done it earlier.

Soon enough, he was dragged into this place, this colourful place. Busy as bees, the street bustled with people, paying little attention to the pair as they made their way through. Sasori seemed to care little for his surroundings.

Even then, the obstruction of people didn't waver his curiosity. Through a gap in the crowd, he was able to view a shop briefly. Stuffed with pottery and sculptures from the floor to the shelves and tables. It was fairly dark in there, however light enough to see the creator work his magic, spinning pots with muddy hands.

"Brat."

The blonde turned, just realizing that he had paused in his step, now staring at the shop across the street. Sasori had turned to him, beckoning.

"Hurry up or you'll get lost."

"Oh, y-yeah."

Deidara hurried to the elder's side, following him deeper into the village. Uphill lead to a large square, where a giant platform was built in the middle. Continuing down the path, they rounded the platform, continuing towards the boats. Soon, regular people seemed to become less common, replaced by rather brawny looking men and women. Window shops with colourful beads or glass ornaments were replaced by ateliers, lined with tables inside shops filled with unfinished carvings and metal works.

The wooden artwork district seemed to end shortly, now replaced by metal workers inside blackened shops. Faces and hands were less clean and more burnt looking, dark patches seemingly pointed among the fingers and cheeks. It was hard to identify people among the crowd, and the cloaked individuals seemed more common.

It wasn't long until they seemed to stop, Sasori having briefly ordered the child to wait outside one of the larger brick-built shops. Deidara could barely hear the puppeteer, having to cringe slightly at the screeching sounds and bangs from other shops including the one they were in. Sasori looked oblivious to it, not even realizing that the boy had barely heard the order, though he did catch the seriousness of it. He wasn't to go far, that's all that the kid could tell.

By the looks of the area, Deidara felt more comfortable knowing that someone he knew was around. Wandering off wasn't exactly a top priority.

_CLANG_

_CLANG_

_CLANG_

_SCREEEEEEEEE..._

_HISS_

_CLANG_

"I hate it here..," Deidara mumbled to himself, holding his hands up to his ears to prevent any loss of hearing. The noise almost hurt, constant banging and engine roars felt as if they were right next to him, not meters away. His hands twitched, it didn't seem as if they liked it either, constantly wriggling with discomfort. The air was thick and heated, causing a shortness of breath. Deidara almost felt sick.

In attempt to drone out the child pondered over again why Sasori was given such a name. Sure, the puppeteer was infamous back in the day, but for all the child could care less about former glory.

Master. That word sickened him down to the deepest pit in his stomach. He couldn't believe he used to utter that word so often, and he used to be glad to do it as well. Sasori was no master. He didn't deserve that name, hell no. Sure, Deidara was grateful for the protection that the other provided, but the very name was far too incredible to accurately describe the guy who couldn't even hug properly.

"Pfft..._Master _Sasori? Sounds so lame..."

* * *

**A/N: I use ryo to refer to their currency but converting ryo is hard so instead, I changed it to equivalent value in yen. I don't use ryo since I live in north america so I'll use Pokemon money as reference...**


	5. Master Sasori Part 2

**Master Sasori Part 2**

Deidara waited patiently outside the Blacksmith's shop. His head was propped up on his arm, a bored expression on his face. He was sitting on a pile of wood outside, pouch lying near his foot. Deidara gazed over in boredom to the other side of the street, watching as a small skinny dog walked in the shadow of the buildings. It was mid-day and the sun was directly above the village. It's warm rays shone upon the village, though despite its efforts, it wasn't hot at all. A sunny day like this was rather rare now, especially since it was autumn. Normally it'd be cloudy, but they were lucky enough to see real daylight today, yesterday as well.

The cold breeze still swept into the streets, usually blowing Deidara's long bang straight into his face, a cause for annoyance since he didn't want any hair to get into his mouth or eyes. However, Deidara wasn't to concerned with that right now, for his attentions were settled on the skinny puppy as it simply stopped walking and stood still for a moment. Deidara stared wide eyed, wondering what it would do, drop over dead? Run off?

The small grey puppy made a whining sound towards the boy, walking out of the shadows. Soon, it was at his feet, whimpering. It nudged his hand, gently mouthing it. Deidara frowned in annoyance, pulling it away from the dog. The dog backed up in surprise before it began to walk in circles, staring up at Deidara. It made another whining sound, this one was closer to a bark though, as if it were trying to bark but was too weak to do it.

"I don't have food, go away." Deidara muttered.

The puppy whined, moving itself into a sitting position in front of the sitting child. Its head was bowed in submission, large eyes bulged at him. It looked rather ashamed, desperate even. To a normal person, they'd probably smile and pet it, but the look was dead to Deidara. Deidara could care less if the dog was starving, as long as it wasn't him. Now that the pup was sitting still, the boy got a better look at it. It's large blue eyes were cloudy and slightly bloodshot, its grey fur coat looked matted.

"I said I don't have food. _Go away_." He muttered again.

It didn't give up, rather it kept sitting there miserably. Deidara raised a brow at the small creature, wondering where it even came from and who would be so horrible as to throw the little thing out on the street. Well, people in this area of the village seemed more hardened anyway, he wouldn't be surprised if he discovered this dog came from an unwanted litter and was thrown out because there was no room. Soon, he was outright having a staring contest with the dog. The dog made its puppy eyes while Deidara glared hard, trying not be effected. He shifted uncomfortably on the wood pile.

_KLANG_

_KLANG _

_KLANG_

The puppy jumped in surprise, its floppy ears jumped at the sharp sound lifting a paw as if it were ready to run. Its tail was curled between its legs, ears now folded back while it's fur seemed to stand on end. Deidara lifted his head, turning towards the entrance to look inside. The Blacksmith's shop looked pretty big on the inside, there was a stove made out of brick in the middle of the shop. Blackened and burned gloves covered in soot were placed on a hanging rack near the entrance. Along the sides of the shop were long solid grey tables that rounded their way along the whole shop. Deidara watched as one worker used a flatter hammer to flatten a blade for what looked like a Katana. The part he was hitting glowed bright yellow, emitting heat. Everytime the hammer striked, sparks would fly before it dissipated. Moving his gaze across the room, he spied Sasori wearing a welding helmet, eyes peeking out through the square hole in the middle. He wore something different, instead of the cloak which was discarded on a rack in the entrance, he wore a dull green apron as well as a long-sleeved shirt and thick gloves. He was placing something round and circular into an oven using long tongs to hold it. Once placed inside the glowing box, he closed the hatch and tipped the welding helmet so his face would be visible. Noticing Deidara's stare, the two made eye contact for a split second before Deidara quickly looked away, trying to seem as if he wasn't even looking at him.

Sasori smirked at the boy before continuing to work on metal parts. His eyes showing an amused glint in them.

_Master huh? He doesn't look all that great...I mean, sure he has those puppet things. Yeah, they're pretty cool but, he's not a _Master _Master right? It's just!...well, if he were so great he wouldn't have left me out here to this thing. _Deidara ranted in his head, glaring at the puppy more menacingly than before.

_I could definitely just leave him. Besides, I know where the exit is this time and the walls aren't _that _high. I could stand up and...well- yeah. The exit's just over there, I can do this._

Deidara sighed, lifting his hand, he stared at it, his palm in particular. The cloth jerked and moved, small primal sounds could be heard muffled under the cloth of the glove. His eyes saddened. _If I'm serious about this...I can't hide them forever...How will he react?_

* * *

_"__You have anybody to go back to? A parent? Or teacher? Some home?"_

* * *

**_"_****_What happened?" _**

_The question was repeated in a harsher tone, an icy warning glare directed itself at the child with full-force. Deidara scoffed at it. He'd seen worse. Even then, it was probably best to answer the guy anyway. Sasori didn't seem like the type who could wait through lies._

* * *

_The sudden feeling of an arm wrapped around his torso, pressing the small body to lean against the others in a hug. Head smashed against chest, which was abnormally hard and stiff since it felt as if the blond had just head-butted a wall. W-what the...Deidara glanced upwards, trying his best to refrain from snapping right then and there. He didn't like being held and sure as hell didn't feel like it right now. Sasori's eyes remained averted in a poker face, staring at the wall while the boy felt an eye twitch in irritation._

_"Am I making you feel better?" Sasori muttered._

* * *

_"__Don't run. You'll fall and get hurt." Sasori warned sternly._

* * *

_Hiruko didn't reply immediately, closing it's half-dead eyes and sighed, "This one's...different."_

* * *

_"__You okay?"_

* * *

_"__Hurry up or you'll get lost."_

* * *

His gloved hand balled up into a fist, his fist shaking slightly. Deidara bit his lip nervously. _Why does he even care? I barely know'em, and he knows next to nothing about me. _His hand sprawled out, stretching it as he placed his hand on his knee and tried to cool down. He didn't get this guy, why did he even save him? Why go through all the trouble of trying to find a place to care for him, feed him, give him some clothing and even make sure he doesn't get hurt? It's not his problem.

This was getting stressful, he was thinking too much about this. Like Sasori even said, they should be grateful that this village is a haven, so he should just be grateful he's not dead; or worse. His head turned up, gazing at the sky lazily. His hand slid from his knee to his side. Maybe he just needs to relax and do some scultp-

...

"Huh?" Deidara blinked, moving his hand along the floor below his feet. Where was the pouch? The boy turned his head, turning to look for his clay bag. Surprisingly, it wasn't there.

"Arf!"

Deidara looked ahead, he stared wide eyed at the puppy just down the street. In its mouth, getting slobber all over the pouch. Anger began to boil within him, gritting his teeth.

Now the mutt had done it.

"Hey! Give that back!"

The chase was on.

* * *

"Dumb dog!" The boy yelled, running at full speed, arms behind him as he bound off towards the puppy. Eyes trained on the stray pup, he didn't notice when it suddenly ducked between the legs of another woodworker. Caught by surprise, it was too late when Deidara slammed hard into the person, causing him to drop all his wooden planks. Catching himself, he shook his head to rid of the daze before looking everywhere to relocate the puppy that stole his belonging.

"Hey!" The woodworker barked.

Deidara ignored the yell, already back on pursuit of the grey puppy. Weaving in and out of the people walking casually on the street, plenty of attention was turned towards the boy.

The blond ran into plenty of people, crashing into wood piles as well as workers who simply wanted to get stuff done. Plenty of walls had met his face by now, that puppy was clever, but not clever enough.

_Ugh! I'm not getting anywhere! That dog just keeps getting farther and farther away! _Thinking quickly, he lept onto a fence, gasping in surprise, arms flailing as he tried to get balance. The wooden fence was rather creaky and wobbly, but he'd manage somehow; he was used to the stiff fences in Iwagakure, not these horrible excuses. Finally gaining balance, Deidara tried tried to get a good look at his feet as he began to run along the fence, slipping would be bad right now, especially with the only clay he had at stake. It would be better up here, people don't run on roofs, he should have a clear path to follow from here.

Running after the puppy, Deidara kept a trained eye on it as he made his way on to rooftops of the shops and stores of the area. The puppy turned a corner, requiring Deidara to jump the street, easily making it to the other side with little effort. Giving a good look around, the child smirked. _Great! This street doesn't have any hiding places! I should be able to corner speed up without worrying about him ducking into anything._

In delight, he sped up gladly, feeling great as the wind blew into his bang, revealing his hidden eye. The world looked way more three-dimensional now, and heck lot easier to maneuver, but Deidara didn't need it usually. Catching up to the dog, Deidara easily out sprinted it. Getting a few meters on the canine, Deidara thought of it as an OK and jumped down, thinking that the chase would end and he return to waiting boredly outside the Blacksmith's shop. He made a stance, ready to grab the pesky puppy when it came to him. But his efforts handed ended the chase yet.

Deidara froze as something grey flew past his face. Time stood still as the boy tried to figure out what was happening before the grey flash landed on the ground behind him and continued to run towards the entrance.

The boy's mouth went agape. _It jumped!?_

Left in the dust, Deidara glared hard at the puppy's backside. Turning to continue to chase to the end.

The puppy ran out of the entrance, catching the eye-patch guards attention as their head followed the motion of the canine out the entrance. In an equally surprised way, the guards watched as Deidara followed in suite at an even faster speed. The chase left a small dust cloud in the pursued and pursuers tracks, both guards tried to process what just happened.

"Hey..."

"What?"

"Wasn't that? That kid that Master Sasori was travelling with?"

"I think so."

* * *

Aware that he had just left the village, Deidara looked back, dreading the idea that when he'd return, Sasori would scold him for leaving again and he'd earn another chop the cranium.

The puppy turned to the forest away from the cliff side where the stairs were. Deidara noticed the puppy fatigue, slowing down as its pants began to become more rigid. He smiled, now eager to get his precious pouch back. He slowed down as well, now into a more jogging pace, ready to take the pouch when he needed to.

Approaching the shadow of the woods, Deidara noticed someone stand in the edge of the dirt path, a shadowy figure. The dog bowed its head, laying the drawing book at the persons feet. The figure crossed its arms in a disappointed way. Deidara furrowed his eyebrows, now growing suspicious of the person in the woods. The figure chuckled lightly, letting his arms fall before stepping out into the open where the child could see.

Deidara tensed.

"Deidara, it's so nice to see you again!"


	6. Master Sasori Part 3

**Master Sasori Part 3**

His blue eyes were set on first figure who revealed himself. An adult no doubt, clad in a very familiar getup. Right arm was completely bare, showing off skin and muscle save for the black gloves worn on both hands. Unlike Deidara's own pair, they weren't fingerless, completely covering the entire hand. They wore a brown flak jacket that covered a dark red uniform underneath. Wearing red shinobi pants with fishnet socks and black sandals. He had forgotten all about the drawing book now, his life was far more important.

The first man made a lop-sided smirk, holding his arms out as if to embrace the child.

"Deidara, it's so nice to see you again!"

The blonde froze in place, eyes wide in shock. He droned out the sounds of the world as he gazed upon the two with a terrified expression. _I-Iwagakure Ninja... T-They're actually here...they're gonna..._

He gulped hard, still staring at the two as if he had saw a ghost. _They're gonna..._

"Come on! Won't you even say anything? It's me! Jirou! You weren't gone for _that _long were ya? Forget about me already?"

Deidara snapped out of his thoughts, his face becoming more and more frightened looking. His foot slid back, he wanted to run, but where? Where would he go? This guy was much stronger than him...he'd catch up...no matter what.

"Don't act so afraid!" The other one spoke kindly. "Don't worry! You're not in trouble!"

"What?" The child gasped. "B-but I-I..."

The man calling himself 'Jirou' walked over to Deidara and squatted down to his height. A kind expression on his face as he stared into his blue eyes. The child flinched as the older man put a hand on his shoulder, pupils flashing to his hand in terror. The terror faded when he realized the hand was gloved, he was safe for now, as long as those gloves didn't come off.

"We were lookin' all over for ya kid! We missed you!"

Deidara blinked in disbelief. _M-missed me? They missed me? _

"Look..." The other Iwagakure Ninja scratched the back of his head awkwardly. "We're sorry about last time. You went through a lot, even Lord Tsuchikage knows that."

A memory flashed in the boy's mind, a memory of an old man with a triangular beard and short stature. A big red nose and thick white eyebrows. Though he was bald on the top of his head, the rest was in a white traditional Chonmage haircut tied in a yellow ribbon. He wore a green and yellow coat with a red collar. Signifying his high rank and status. He felt his heart sink at the thought, but at the same time, build up a little anger. He shivered slightly at the memory.

"M-master?" His face scrunched up at the title of his master, his teacher. The disgusting word rolling off his tongue.

"That's right! He reconsidered!" The Iwa Ninja perked, giving the boy a confident smirk. "He regrets doing all that to you when it surely was an accident! So he's gonna cut you a break and let come back home without punishment! How's that for an apology eh?" Jirou chuckled, patting the young boy on the back.

Deidara scowled, pent up anger beginning to show. Hands clenched, eyebrows furrowing at the very thought of his master. There was no way he was going back. The world beyond the stone walls was far more savoury. His hobbies would not be ridiculed.

"Lord Tsuchikage had a talk with the village elders about it. It took a while but most of everyone agreed in the end, you can come home!"

"_I'm not going_!"

Jirou paused, face falling at the unexpected answer to stare with a dumbfounded expression. Surely the child wasn't serious. Born and raised in Iwa, he was sure that the speech would've done it. Convinced the boy to turn his back on the world and return loyally. Looks like it would be harder than that, "What?"

"I said I'm not going!" Deidara snapped, causing the man to back off from the enraged blond, "Everyone over there is stupid! They deserved to get blown up! _I hate them! I hate them! I hate them!_ Master too!"

The child was left heaving, expression darkened with hatred, hands clenched, threatening to tear someone apart. There was no way he'd return. Not after everything that's happened. Maybe he didn't believe it before –he didn't believe it a few minutes ago actually. Out here, Deidara had found someone far better than his Master had ever been. Even if his hugs were awkward.

_Sasori._

Deidara settled his eyes to the floor, voice becoming shaky as he continued, "I-I've found someone...someone better than Master. Way better. He's a little strange, but it's not so much that I completely hate him. He's an artist too! And he's-"

"An Akatsuki member?"

Deidara's head shot up, eyes wide in shock.

* * *

_"__There's an organization I joined. The Akatsuki. Ring a bell?"_

* * *

"Sasori is part of an evil Organization called the Akatsuki. Most likely he'd have brought you somewhere once when he gets the chance and kill you."

"K-kill me?!" Deidara' repeated slowly, processing the piece of information in his mind. It confused him, baffled him that the somewhat kind redhead would do such a thing. No way, he wouldn't have, he cared him, fed him even.

"It's the reality of it kid, accept it. That Sasori guy is bad news, good thing I got you to come before he could do anything." Jirou spoke in a relieved tone, sighing to add to the effect.

"But he...why did he do all this for me then?"

The shinobi was silent, only the sound of nature could be heard around them. The puppy that stood by the other shinobi's side whimpered and dipped it's head above the drawing book laying on the ground.

"To make it convincing. For people like him, it's all worth it to make you feel like you're cared for. Then when you're not looking-"

_SHING_

Deidara stumbled back as a kunai was drawn close to his face. Fear written all over his face as he stared at the black weapon, it's sharpness gleamed in the sun. He felt a bead of sweat fall down his face. His heart beat fast, he thought he was gonna die.

"He either knocks you out or stabs you in the back. Then you wake up paralyzed while he's tearing you open to look at your insides," Jirou slowly drew back the kunai, twirling it in his hand before sliding it back into the weapon pouch. He held back a laugh, definitely getting a kick out of scaring the kid. He grinned sadistically.

The amused Iwagakure nin raised both arms into the air to express his next words. "After that! Game over! Dead! Gone! No help possible! That's what he does you see. That's why he's so dangerous. Listed with a high rank in the bingo book" He ended it off on a serious note.

The blonde child gulped, afraid. Would Sasori really have done that? If that were true, wouldn't the redhead have done it already? He was weak, so weak back then. Completely open to all attack. Surely...

_Sasori._

_Would he? Would Sasori?_

"No, he wouldn't do that..." He spoke under his breath, heart rate going up as he thought about it. What Sasori had done for him. He wouldn't...

* * *

_Sasori turned his back on the child, more clicking and clanging sounds emitting from the table as the redhead continued to do something on the desk. The boy blinked, visible eye wide with a sparkle of curiosity as he wondered what Sasori was doing. Picking up a silver object, the older faced him once again, a tool in his hand, a blade-like thing however barely resembling a knife._

* * *

_"__If it worked, the candle would be lit. However this time, it didn't light up. Something went wrong, and you don't need to know what that is."_

* * *

_"__I don't belong to a single village, I'm not loyal to any of them. I live on my own accord. A rogue."_

_Deidara's hand clenched, sweating slightly, "Maste-someone...told me that people like you are dangerous..."_

_Sasori chuckled in amusement, "Maybe, maybe not. How do you know what that someone says is true?"_

* * *

_Sasori's hand grabbed an item off the desk, quickly throw it towards the boy's head. Deidara frowned and tilted his position, carving knife slicing through his blond bang before planting itself firmly into the wall behind him with a loud 'thud', vibrating on impact._

* * *

_"__Well, I'll just tell you one thing. It's an organization that protects its members and I'm part of it so I'm safe for the most part. You however, are not part of an organization but I'm still taking care of you aren't I?" _

* * *

_Hiruko paused, causing the child to walk straight into its hind end. The blond stumbled back, immediately pissed at the sudden halt. _

_"__I don't expect you to, a member of your generation wouldn't know of the past."_

* * *

_Hiruko's eyes shot open at the enquiry, dark look imminent on his face, "I have my reasons."_

* * *

_He also said..._Deidara felt sick.

* * *

_The blond opened his eyes in fear, looking upwards in surprise to see Sasori rest his hand on his head instead of chopping it painfully. Palm rested lightly as the Akatsuki member made a small smile, "People have their reasons for doing things, okay?"_

* * *

"Look Deidara, it's sad but it's the reality. Just be glad you're safe from that psychopath. Now, come on, we gotta go before he realizes you're gone." Jirou gestured with his gloved hand to follow as he turned around towards the forest.

The child made a horror-stricken face, eyes wide in realization. His body trembled, sides becoming painfully sensitive to the clothing against his skin. His heart beat heavily against his chest, hands strangely silent despite the crisis. Deathly, the child looked back over his shoulder, glancing back to the village gates.

"Hurry up!"

Deidara snapped his head back to Jirou, impatiently waiting on a tree branch.

"You wanna stay here with that killer or come home safely? You're choice. Lord Tsuchikage also decided that your art-thing isn't so bad, and apologizing gravely for insulting it." Jirou made a disapproving glare.

_He's apologizing? _The child's heart leaped, confidence swelling at the idea as a large ecstatic smile grew on his face, "Yes! I want go home and see Master-Onoki!"

Following in slow timid steps after the Jonin from his village. Jirou jumped into the trees, Deidara followed in suite, eager to return home. However still conflicted about leaving Sasori. The surrounding trees engulfed the pair into the shadows, just enough light made it through the brush that they could see. Deidara's hair flew behind him as he leapt from branch to branch, thinking of that home.

_Meanwhile_

The forest floor shook and melted, revealing a green bump in the ground. Suddenly, the bump rose, and Zetsu separated his two halves.

"**He left.** _Tsk, tsk, tsk, Sasori wasn't paying attention again. _**He tends to do that when he's working.** _I know, should we tell him? _**No, let's just watch. It's _his _orders, we are not to interfere,**" An amused grin crept on Jozetsu's face in anticipation, "Yes, let us."


	7. To Deceive

**To Deceive**

The puppy whined, bounding through the forest after the three ninja. He paused for a few seconds, sniffing the ground to relocate their scent. The puppy felt tired, it's aching body had seen better days, days when the canine didn't need to worry too much about food or shelter. Now his ribs poked from his chest, matted fur becoming infested with fleas.

"Sss..."

It raised its head quickly, ears perked. Twigs snapped and rocks ground against each other creating the impression of a large body. Something shiny and blue poked out from the bush, eventually coming out completely. The serpent reared its head, tongue flickering out from its mouth.

The puppy stared up, frozen on the spot. He knew he had to move, he couldn't stay or else the snake would eat it. But that size...what snake was that large!?

"Arf-?"

"HISSSS"

_CHOMP_

* * *

Sasori walked out the shop, wet hands being dried off with a green towel. He had finished up most of the weaponry he'd need as well as the collection of metal parts required for a battle puppet. It wasn't until he was finished with the necessities did he notice the time. He had been at work for a full three hours, surely Deidara was fuming in anger or dead with boredom by now. Of course, he wasn't _finished_finished, since he'd need to prepare plenty more metal parts to use while on travel. He couldn't come here too often anyways.

He'd might as well put Deidara to work as well, have something occupy the child while he was working. That clay couldn't be enough to keep the whining away forever.

"Brat, I'm gonna have you do something for me. I'll need you head to that wood-shop we went to earlier and ask the owner for a small set of carving tools to borrow, he should know which ones I want. If he doesn't agree, tell him their on my orders and make sure to be persistent. Got that clear?"

...

"Brat? You heard me?

Sasori blinked, surprised to hear no reply. Was the kid giving him the silent treatment? The puppeteer felt a tinge of annoyance. Turning around, he opened his mouth to give the ignorant blond a ear-full until he realized the seat was empty. Blinking, Sasori looked around, spying for a little kid with long hair and teal kimono jacket, however panicked to find he was nowhere nearby.

"Where'd that brat go now?" Sasori git his teeth and cursed.

* * *

"Hurry up." Jirou said sternly, a cold edge to his voice.

Deidara made a confused sound, wondering what might have made the Shinobi nervous. He could ask, but decided against it. He looked around wearily, was something following them? He couldn't see much. Even if something _was _following them in pursuit, he wouldn't be able to spy them out so easily in this thick cover of leaves. Deidara's heart started to race, the lack of awareness, the very thought that they could be attacked. The boy gulped and tried to ignore that thought.

_Rogue ninja? Or even...no, he wouldn't do that. I know what these guys said about him earlier but...I just can't bring myself to completely believe it. I guess I'll just listen for now._

Putting more effort into his bound, the child caught up within a couple meters of the Iwagakure Jonin.

They traveled in silence, neither talking to the other. Deidara stared at the back of Jirou's head. What was he thinking right now? Was he thinking about an enemy? Or was he thinking about the route they were on? What do ninja think about?

Deidara blinked, spying something below them. It shimmered in the sunlight, something thin and stringy looking. Almost metallic for he could only see it for a second before quite a few washed into sight. His hands to began to jerk a little. Something under his gloves started to freak out, tearing and biting at the cloth. Deidara glanced at his hands. Alarmed.

"_What? What's wrong_?" He whispered as for the other shinobi not to hear.

_POOF_

"Aah!" Deidara shrieked as his vision was suddenly clouded in a white smoke. His arms came up to shield his head. Stumbling back on the branch he had landed on previously. He stumbled back along the length of the thick branch, trying to take himself out of the daze.

Frantically, he opened his eyes, still panicked as he could barely see a few inches away from his face. Backing up even more, he felt his leg trip something. Something thin and sharp.

_Wires?!_

The sound of tension wires sounded in the forest. Cloth ripping against thread, the muffled shrieks of a child could be heard at a close proximity. Birds nearby began to flap their wings and flee loudly. Retreating to the air to escape the smoke and what they perceived as danger. Jirou smirked as he paused on a branch, looking back on his work, gazing up into the dark leaves above at their catch.

"Hah! I knew it couldn't be true when I heard a brat like you wiped out an entire pursuit division. If you did, than you would've easily been able to spy out the trap we had laid," Jirou spoke loudly and confidently at the netted prey they had caught.

"And now that you're caught, the price on your head'll be worth more than any regular mission. The village will thank us for capturing a traitor."

Jirou jumped up to the net, ready to go receive his catch. Finding the right wire hidden in the shadow of a tree, he knelt down. Reaching into his weapon's pouch, a kunai was drawn. Spinning on his finger before he caught it with his palm. Easily snapping the wire with his kunai.

The cut wire quickly released tension and dropped the net. Causing it and the contents inside to fall towards the ground with a loud hollow thump.

_We even got some intel on the location of one of the Akatsuki members._ Jirou jumped and landed on the dirt floor of the forest.

"Even more of a reason for Lord Tsuchikage to reward me. I can't wait!" The Iwa nin clapped happily.

"The project may have failed but-" Jirou kneeled down and stared at the dark red cloak flopped on the ground. "-I can always salvage the spoils." He grinned as he grabbed the trap cloth roughly.

Jirou's eyes widened slightly, immediately, he tore off the cloth to reveal a wooden log beneath.

"Substitution?!" He gasped.

"Damn!" The Iwa nin whipped his ahead in all directions. "Where'd that damn brat go?!"

* * *

_I couldn't use a clay substitution. I don't have any at the moment. _

Deidara thought hastily as he bounded towards Sumi village at his top speed. His eyes wide in fear as he realized what misfortune had befallen him. Those Iwagakure ninja weren't friendly. _And even if I did have clay, I'm still working on it. I can barely make a clay clone. I have to get back and tell Sasori! I can't fight them on my own, they're too strong! _Deidara winced as he landed on another branch, stumbling forward slightly. His leg was cut from the wire he tripped over. Movement wasn't as easy as before, with every bound and jump, his leg stung with a searing pain. _It's not much, I've suffered worse! _He tried to remind himself. _Just a small cut Deidara, it's just a small cut! _

_Did he follow me yet? _The child landed on the ground, hiding himself in a bush. Keeping a keen eye, he focused on sound and listened for his pursuer. Reducing his movement among the bushes to hear for any sounds.

...

...

_He's not following, good. _Deidara jumped out of the bushes and onto a high branch before dropping to his knees in a whimper. Glancing at his arm, he cringed, a wet feeling on his arm. His wound had opened, and the cut behind his leg was even worse. Making his way back the way they came. He wasn't all that familiar with this forest, but he could definitely just follow the tracks they had left. They were faint every time he'd glance at them, that ninja did a good job of covering tracks.

Deidara appeared, bounding his way from branch to branch. The wind flew past him, blowing his blonde locks past his face. He had taken a detour back to the village but strayed from the path a little. Knowing what the Jonin were like in his village, Deidara was well aware that they would no doubt catch up at some point.

It was noon now, the sun was just above the horizon and the shadows had begun to stretch towards the East. Now providing some if not much cover for Deidara who wore a green robe, making hiding just a _little _easier. Making traps was something that the boy had learned to do back in his village but he didn't exactly have the materials needed at the moment. His biggest disadvantage: no clay. Deidara had already berated himself for completely forgetting about it.

He winced again from the wound on the back of his leg but was quickly distracted when something in his glove began to freak out. Acting swiftly, he dove for a bush and tried to get cover, dipping his head in hopes of not being seen. His breath was steady but still more rapid than before. He had to just keep still.

"_Sssh! Be quiet!_" He hissed at his hand who continued to jerk under his glove. Making small primal sounds. In annoyance and dread, he balled his fist to muffle the sound.

Soon after like expected, he could see a familiar figure jump into sight. Looking around for a moment before Jirou cursed something that Deidara could not quite hear. Curiously, the child leaned forward and strained his ears.

"Stupid brat..," He could barely make out Jirou' cursing as he stomped the floor.

The ninja decided on a direction before bounding off into the brush. Deidara blinked, lifting his head to look over the shrub. _They left..._

His hand continued to jerk and move around. The feeling of something wet and gooey caught his attention. Moving out of the bush, the child looked at both hands. An expression of disgust came over Deidara's face, thrusting his hands away from himself.

"Aw great...now my gloves are wet..." He pouted.

A small drop of saliva rolled down his thumb, glistening dimly in the sunlight before falling onto the dirt. Deidara frowned and stepped away from it, refusing to look at his palms.

"Ew! _Drool!_"

It didn't make sense. Those guys were gone but these things were still freaking out. Where the ninja still around? Or was it something else?

Something poked at the inside of the glove, even trying to bite its way out. Along with it came cup-fulls of drool. Deidara glared; making another fist and trying to squeeze the thing until it would go quiet. It didn't work naturally, his hand just started to hurt a lot now. He was lucky this time not to get bitten

_SPLOOSH_

Deidara's attention was easily aroused. Turning towards the sound with heightened awareness. That sound, it definitely was water. But what made the sound? Was the ninja back?

_SPLOOSH_

_SPLASH_

The sound of rippling water was too reckless to be a ninja's. Either it was a really bad ninja or something else. The thought relaxed Deidara's nerves a little. He feared little else than another ninja, usually capable of scaring away any other animal he came in contact with. The only other two things he ever recalled being scared of were slugs and the dark.

Cautiously, he made his way through the greenery. The sounds got louder, signalling that he was getting closer to the source of it. Pushing away a branch, the source was revealed.

There was a river here, thin but still full of rushing water. The water looked muddy and brown, glaring off the sunlight from above. In the middle of it were two male deer. Their horns locked with the others, pushing and shoving. Deidara watched in curiosity as the two male bucks continued to spar, heads bowed towards the forest floor. One deer reared up and batted antlers with the other, pushing it towards the river with a mighty force. The smaller deer caught the antlers but was shoved back into the river. Making a small splash with its back leg as it stepped into the depths of the bank. It was planted firmly in, the deer remade its footing before pushing back more desperately as if it knew it was on the losing side. The larger buck pulled back for a moment before smashing the younger buck into the river.

Deidara was absorbed into the fight, watching as the smaller caused water to fly into the air as it fell. The buck made an attempt to get up but failed since it seemed it's leg had gotten stuck. The deer yanked at it before finally managing to pull it out. Deidara squinted, spying some grey substance clinging to the buck's hoof.

_What is that?...wait...that looks like..._

The realization hit him in a flash. Immediately, he ran to the river causing the two apposing deer to jump. The larger one quickly turned and darted into the woods while the other one yanked the rest of itself out of the river. It shook off the water and sprinted in another direction.

Face serious and determined, he knelt at the river and rolled up his right sleeve. Quickly, he plopped his hand down into the freezing water and felt for the bottom. Having to lean forward carefully as not to fall in. The ground around the river was muddy but Deidara didn't care. He suspected that this river had something that was far more important than his clothes.

Deidara's elbow was soon dipped the in the water. By now his arm was beginning to feel numb due to the cold temperature but he refused to take a break. His mouth opened slightly in an effort to get passed the other things above the river bed. He made a sound of satisfaction as he felt the bottom of the river. Moving his hand around the dirt and rocks before finally coming upon the feeling of a familiar material. Once he found that there was plenty at the river bed, he started to dig his hand in and grab a handful of it. Pulling it out of the water.

"Yes! Clay!" Deidara was nearly jumping for joy.

The sticky grey material felt good in his hands. He squeezed it, the squelching sound and water running down his hands as it changed shape was like music to his ears. Deidara was pulled out of his happy thoughts when he felt the ball of clay almost plop out of his hands as something jutted out of his glove.

_So that's what they wanted. Alright! I don't have anything other than clay but it should delay them a little. _Deidara rolled up both sleeves. Eyebrows furrowed, his determination was fuelled by the will to escape the Iwagakure Ninja. He threw the clay into the grass near the river, now dipping both hands into the water. The gloves would stay in order to keep his hands in check. _I'll have to do it now! I don't think he cares if I'm alive on the trip back!_

* * *

"You idiot! You let him get away!" Jirou snapped at the other ninja. Pushing a branch hastily out the way and letting it snap back into place.

"Why is it my fault?! You're the one who cut the thread!" The chubbier one pointed accusingly at him.

"But _you _set up the trap!"

"I didn't make it substitution proof so I left it to you gain his trust so this wouldn't happen! You did all the talking!" The ninja landed on a branch before jumping again. Under his shoes appeared tiny white balls clinging to the bottom.

"You never told me that!"

"Well you should've been able to tell what falling wood sounds like compared to a body! Didn't you think it was strange when the kid didn't scream when you cut the thread?"

"Why didn't you speak up then if you noticed?!"

"I _just _noticed dammit!"

"Damn! Why did this have to happen..," He brought a hand up to his face, massaging a temple in annoyance. His eyes squeezed shut at the throbbing in his forehead.

"Look, just let me concentrate! It's a good thing that brat's too stupid to realize that he left a blood trail."

The chubby one landed and looked at the branch. Making an imaginary path that the child could have gone down based on the blood trail he left behind. He gazed ahead to see some more blood on a branch ahead, surprisingly higher than the branch they were on now.

"Come on," He gestured towards the other, "He went this way."

Jirou nodded and followed after. Focused solely on their target. As the one Deidara knew most, it only made sense he would do the talking. There were only two of them left, but that only meant less of the reward to share.

* * *

_It's done._ Deidara sighed and looked around wearily. His hands were coated in clay that was beginning to dry. Dirty gloves with white patches lay discarded at the base of a nearby tree. The boy stood up and stepped back. Getting a good look at his work. Unsatisfied, he leaned down and made a few adjustments, pushing up some clay here and there and smoothening other parts, leaving the areas to look glossy. Getting up again, he used his wrist to push the bang away from his face so he could see with both eyes. With a smirk, he tried to wipe his hands off a large rock. He couldn't get a lot off but enough was enough. He couldn't stick around much longer.

He winced, feeling the cut on his leg open again and rub against the ribbon. Quickly sitting down and lifting his leg to inspect it. He had used his ribbon which he tied his hair in to use a suffice for a proper gauze. If he had learned anything from re-tracing his path to do this, it was that he had left a blood trail.

His hands were about to untie the ribbon but paused when he realized it was probably not a good idea to touch the wound with his clay coated fingers. He didn't want to get it dirty, Deidara was told countless times not to get wounds dirty. He wasn't sure why but he decided it was for good reason since everyone seemed to know this.

The brown ribbon had spots of red soaked into it. Blood and seeped out but it hadn't started to drip of it yet. Deidara just hoped that the destraction would bring this off his trail for a while. Long enough for him to get back. He was surprised that they had run such a distance.

He stared at the clay he had left. There was only a little but he knew he was fast so he should get back soon. He'd have to try.

* * *

"What?!" The chubby ninja exclaimed, eyes wide.

"What is it? Did you find 'em?!" Jirou joined the other in the clearing. His eyes looked on to find where the blood trail had ended. His face became similar to the other Iwagakure ninja's face as he realized what just happened.

The blood trail had ended. But not towards a body, not a human one at that. Instead, a bleeding un-identifiable organ lay in the lap of a clay figure. Spouting out the fresh crimson liquid from it's arteries. The blood stained the white colour of the clay figure of Deidara. It was sitting on the floor, leaned against a large flat boulder.

"That stupid brat!"

"H-he tricked us?! And what is that anyway?!" Jirou pointed at the leaking organ.

"I don't know but...that doesn't matter. He escaped us..."

"Oh that's just great! Now we have no idea where the fuck he is!"

The chubby ninja watched as Jirou stalked up the small clay doll. Lifting his hand to grab it.

"Hey! Wait! It might explode!" He stepped forward to try and stop him.

Jirou ignored him and grabbed it. Throwing it angrily. The other ninja flinched, readying himself for the explosion.

...

It didn't come. Looking past his arm, the doll lay lifeless at the base of the tree. It's face and body now disfigured due to the force it was thrown at. It was almost creepy how it looked now that its human features were destroyed.

"It didn't...explode?" The ninja murmured.

"Shit!" He heard Jirou exclaim.

"Now what!?"

* * *

Deidara blinked as he jumped through the trees. Landing onto a branch he looked over his shoulder, a tiny smirk making its way up to his face. _They fell for it, good._

He lifted both arms and made his trademark hand sign, ignoring the pain of his left arm. He had been forced to squeeze out a little blood, but it was already pouring out like crazy so it didn't take a lot of effort. It hurt to survive, but survival was most important anyways.

"_KATSU!_"


	8. The Raven

**The Raven**

_(Naruto Shippuden OST 1 Track 10 - Akatsuki)_

"_The kid and Sasori got separated at the supply Village. _**Sasori is unaware at the moment. **_He's probably noticed by now though...or not_," Jozetsu chuckled at the end of his sentence.

Konan frowned disapprovingly. Her feet shifted on the floor as she turned her head towards the Akatsuki Leader, awaiting his response.

"I see. What caused them to separate?"

"_Two stone ninja came a long and one persuaded him to come home. __I doubt that he's _really _going home though_."

"He believed them?" Pein asked.

"_**Yeah**__._"

"I knew it," The blue-haired woman grumbled in an annoyed tone. "Sasori isn't suited for this kind of responsibility. We don't have a choice..," Konan turned hastily towards the Leader. "Pein, order Sasori to eliminate the child-"

"No."

Both members whirled their heads towards the deep voice. A figure stood leaned against the wall in the shadows, hiding his identity. Arms crossed. Konan's expression turned into a mix of surprise and anger while Pein continued to have a straight face.

"The child will not be eliminated. Instead, this is a good opportunity to get a good idea of how the jutsu works, and thus, the child's skills. _A ninja must see through deception,_ an extremely basic ninja rule. If he cannot do even that then he is unworthy of us. Sasori probably has already noticed and is in pursuit. The child will live. However, escaping Iwagakure is large task. I doubt there were only two ninja sent to hunt him down."

"You're suggesting?" The Akatsuki Leader asked.

"I want to test out our newest asset. Assign him to get rid of the reinforcements but not interfere with the main event. I want to see how strong _he_ really is."

Konan watched as Pein nodded in agreement. Turning away, he walked towards the exit of the room. She was quiet for a few moments before turning back to the shadowed figure on the other end of the room.

"Why do you intend to keep that child?"

The figure shrugged, "I'm curious."

"Curious?" She furrowed her eyebrows.

"You're curious too, I can tell."

"I'm not curious at all. I just don't want to get a child involved..," She replied, slight anger in her voice. Knowing better than to let her emotions show too much.

"Isn't it only for the greater good? They say children are the key to our world's future. Even then, he'd die without Sasori's help. We need that information and so it would be best to create a controlled environment and see it through."

Konan turned to look at her feet, a look of unsureness and worry came over her, "I'm not curious. But if we're going to keep the child than at least don't make him suffer too much. Not like we did, Nagato."

* * *

The sound of footsteps echoed throughout the piped walls. Bouncing off the hard surfaces to the space ahead. The closer Pein got to the exit, the more muffled these sounds became as they were obstructed by the pitter-patter of the everlasting rain. Eventually approaching the exit, he stood confidently above the other down below.

A young boy by the looks of it. His black hair drenched in the rain while bowed in a kneeling position. Upon the sound of Akatsuki Leader's arrival he lifted his head and looked at him expectantly. An expressionless look on his face, seemingly able to completely ignore being drenched in the cold.

The two males made eye contact.

"Your mission will be to go to North-East to the unnamed country. If you get there soon enough, there should be a conflict nearby the Village of Ink. Surely you know of this village?"

"It's a port."

"Good. According to sources, there are Iwagakure Ninja there who have come to pursue something belonging to one of our members."

"You want me to retrieve that something?"

"No, orders are to get rid of reinforcements that may be stationed near the conflict. However, you are not to reveal your identity to the member or the person being pursued. Stay away from the main event but make sure neither get killed. Those are your orders."

The boy nodded, "So I am to provide extra protection to this member's subordinate?"

"No, this person is not his subordinate. Not yet. Regardless, you will do as I say."

The boy bowed his head, staring at the water below, "...Yes, Leader."

Pein closed his eyes, relaxing himself for a few moments before opening them upon the same area he had looked on before. The boy had gone.

* * *

_BOOM_

Sasori whirled around towards the forest, all attention focused towards the loud bang that shook the ground ever so slightly. He had been asking the guards if they had seen Deidara, to which both confirmed that they had. One explained that they saw a tiny dog running out and the kid had followed after. Sasori had planned on asking which direction they ran in but it seemed clear enough now that he didn't need the answer to that question.

"What the?" One guard exclaimed in shock.

"An attack!?" The other asked, eyes wide.

"No."

"Eh?" Both looked at Sasori in surprise.

"It's just another skirmish near this area between Ninja. Don't get involved," He warned.

Both guards agreed with a nod but still stared up the cliff, wondering what was happening on the higher ground. Attentions were caught as they realized that Sasori had begun jumping up the cliff face, running up the stairs occasionally.

The two decided not to question his motives. After all, Master Sasori _did _say not get involved.

* * *

The area was burnt to a crisp. The explosion had blackened the trees to the point they were beginning to crumble into ash. A large burnt scar was now slashed across the rocks from the direction that the explosion had originated from.

Suddenly, from the ground irrupted a hand as it freed itself from the earth. It slammed itself onto the dirt, hauling up the rest of the body. The two ninja pulled themselves out the hole, stumbling as they tried to stand up.

"T-that stupid brat!" Jirou cursed, stomping the ground.

"If it weren't for me using hidden mole, we'd both be either knocked out or dead."

"I know that!"

"So what do we do now?" The chubbier ninja asked.

"The others _must've _heard the explosion. They should be coming over now to see what happened."

"Should we wait until they come?"

Jirou grit his teeth. Deidara had turned out to be more tactical than he thought. _The pursuit division sent after that kid before...no wonder they got wiped out._

"Jirou?"

"I don't like this. We're getting beaten by a kid, you gonna accept that?"

The other blinked, taking a few moments to get what his partner was saying. He smirked, shaking his head.

"Exactly. So we're going to stop playing hide and seek." Jirou grinned, slipping off his gloves and throwing them elsewhere. He leaning down to grab a rock. He threw the rock into the air a couple of times, looking it over for a few seconds. Eventually, he threw it high into the air.

"I'll show this amateur what _real _blast looks like!"

With his other hand, he got into position, waiting for the rock to fall into place. The rock hurled towards the ground, once in front of him, Jirou thrust his other hand forward, pushing the rock away from himself. The rock suddenly cracked and began to glow and sizzle.

_BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM_

The blast was gone within a quarter of a second. Revealing it's work to the two Explosion Corps Ninja. Burnt and blackened wood was everywhere as the top halves of the trees were charred to nothing.

Jirou and his partner scanned the cleared forest, looking for a curtain bundle of trouble. It didn't take long since the kid was quick to try and stand up.

With a few shaky movements, Deidara hauled himself off the ground, coughing up whatever had gotten into his mouth during the explosion. Luckily he had ducked in time, but just barely since some of his hair was singed now. He blinked, looking towards the source of the explosion, shocked and surprised to see the two ninja standing there as if nothing had happened. They were virtually unharmed.

"Game's over kid!"

* * *

_BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM_

_Another explosion? _Sasori gazed up past the trees, currently sprinting as fast as he could in the direction of the previous explosion. With every new event, his worry for the kid increased. He couldn't ignore the dreaded thoughts in his head of what could be happening right now to Deidara, things that he could've prevented if he just payed attention!

"Halt!"

Sasori quickly stopped. His finger twitched, rushing with chakra as he looked around wearily. Soon, he was surrounded by shinobi wearing what he recognized as Iwagakure uniforms. Sasori frowned, beginning to count their number.

"One...two..," His eyes moved from one ninja to the next, murmuring the numbers under his breath.

"Akatsuki! You are now under arrest for criminal activities..."

"Three...four...five..."

"Including the murder of countless shinobi from Iwagakure!"

"Six...seven..."

"Come peacefully without resisting and we may have some lenience!"

"Eight...nine..."

"Is he even listening?" The head Iwa Shinobi twitched, unable to ignore Sasori's rather loud whisper.

"I don't think so!" Another replied, quickly pulling out a kunai.

"Ten..," Sasori stepped forward.

The other surrounding ninja quickly jumped back, weary of the Akatsuki's every move.

"Get out of my way and I won't have to kill you," He stated calmly, as if the surrounding ten shinobi posed absolutely no threat.

"A-as if we'll fall for that!" Someone called out in a frightened tone, but the puppeteer really didn't care that much about who spoke.

"Fine. I'll make this quick," Sasori reached over to his back to retrieve his scrolls.

* * *

_(Naruto Shippuden OST 1 Track 23 - Taiji[Confronting])_

_SHING_

Deidara jumped back. Clumsily making his footing as he tried to increase the distance between him and Jirou. For normal reasons, it would be because he wasn't good at Taijutsu. But this wasn't why.

_Now!_ He lifted both arms, trying to make a hand seal but was interrupted as Jirou aimed a punch at him. In an attempt to dodge, he jumped into the air and tried to get to higher ground. Jumping up higher and higher branches.

"So we're playing tag now huh?!" He heard Jirou yell after him.

Deidara yelped in surprise as Jirou suddenly came face to face with him. Landing and stumbling on a branch before falling towards the forest floor.

_No!_ He opened his mouth but swallowed in order to stop himself from screaming. It would draw the enemies attention like that. With some quick thinking, he attempted to focus chakra into his feet. The boy twisted in the air and tried to attach himself onto something, a stem, a branch, anything that would stop himself from slamming into the hard forest floor. He looked ahead of himself, spying a thick branch below, he knew he wouldn't be able to land normally like this.

He waited for the branch to get close enough. Eventually able to attach both feet onto the bark with his chakra. He swung under the branch. Deidara felt relieved but winced as he felt the pressure build up on the cut on his leg. The wound was opening and it was opening painfully. The sudden rush of pain caused him to lose focus making his chakra recede from the branch. Falling again, he twisted to face the sky, looking for the enemy. Making mental calculations, Deidara determined the rough distance between the two of them. Satisfied with the distance, he lifted both arms and made the backwards Ram seal.

"_KATSU!_"

* * *

Bodies fell with a loud thump. Blood splattered and pooled on the ground, glistening it's crimson colour in the small amounts of sun that could get past the leaves of the trees above.

Sasori stood still. Surrounded by the bodies. His sleeved arm was still positioned by his back in the exact same pose he was before. This slaughter, it wasn't his doing, he hadn't even pulled out his puppets yet.

His chocolate eyes were still for a moment, then moving to scan each body. Each one had a kunai sticking out obviously at the neck area. Precisely aimed at the vital spot for a one-hit kill. The Iwagakure Ninja definitely weren't a problem now. But the solving of this problem lead to two more questions. The first was: Who killed them? And the second more-important question was: Where they a friend? Or foe?

"Don't try to hide. It's obvious you're around here somewhere." He called out.

A few seconds past. A few bushes moved, behind a tree revealed a shadowed figure. Seemingly one of a young boy determining from height. Sasori narrowed his eyes at the figure, his arm inching closer and closer to his puppets.

"Who are you?"

"I can't answer that question." A low voice replied.

"Why can't you answer my question?"

"Because I was ordered to...by your Leader."

_So Leader's been spying on us huh? More likely though, Zetsu's been sticking around and reported probably. Great._

"I see. Were you ordered to do anything else?" Sasori enquired with a dangerous look. Wondering what the Leader of the Akatsuki was planning.

The shadowed figure moved towards the ground, kneeling in a submissive position, head bowed down, "Those were my only orders, sir."

"Alright..," Sasori nodded, turning back in the direction he was going in.

The figure stood up, onyx eyes followed the Akatsuki member as he dropped his arm. Taking a few steps before going into an all out run. However, stopping briefly to look at the unknown person as if he had just forgotten something.

"...Thank you."

* * *

"Hah! What are you even doing?! I don't see any bombs anywhere!" Jirou laughed, closing in on Deidara.

Regardless of his words, the boy still lifted his arms to make the backwards Ram Seal. Fingers falling into their proper place to form the boy's signature hand sign.

"Kid, stop trying to scare me," The Iwa ninja growled in a low tone.

Deidara continued to create the seal. Time slowed down as everything came into place.

"I SAID STOP IT!" Jirou yelled, launching himself off a branch towards the boy.

Deidara's eyes were wide, as if he hadn't even heard the man yell at him. No, he was deaf right now. The sound of rushing leaves and the dreaded forest floor had droned out any other sound. Right now, survival and attack were the only things that mattered to him.

"_KATSU!_"

_BOOM_

Jirou's body went limp from shock as the explosion engulfed his right arm, singing it. His shriek of terror was outclassed by the sound of the small explosion. In fear, he landed onto a branch, grasping his burnt arm, inspecting the damage.

_Pant_

_Pant_

_Pant_

The boy felt relieved to see him retreat from his view, breathing heavily. Thinking that Jirou had gone off to heal himself or something. It would buy him some time.

_And if he does come, those weren't the only bombs he planted on himself..._Deidara tried to assure himself. He'd be fine, Sasori _must _have heard the blast, so he should be coming to get him. Even if he didn't hear the first one, there were many explosions throughout the entire fight so he should have heard at least _one _of them.

Deidara turned back to the ground. His arms flailed for anything to grab onto or at least lighten the impact. Reaching out to a nearby tree stem, he grit his teeth, forcing chakra into his hand. He tried to attach it to the tree to slow down his fall. It worked...for a few seconds until he realized that it only helped to repel him from the tree.

Eventually, time ran out and Deidara hit a bush. Successfully though, his fall was lightened and no injuries were received. After snapping out his daze, he tried to find his way out of the large brush.

Stepping out into the open, he winced again. Finding himself in a slight limp as his leg stung with every tiny movement, arm doing no better. He hadn't thought it was that bad, but the ribbon was soaked in his blood. Bits of the crimson liquid dripped onto the ground. Oh well, not much he could do about it now.

"Caught you ya little brat!"

Deidara looked up, shocked to see Jirou standing in front of him. He turned to try and run but saw he was blocked off by the other chubbier ninja.

"I oughta blow you to bits! But I can't do that 'cause the Tsuchikage wouldn't be happy with us," The Iwa ninja said.

The blonde child looked around for options, but there were very few strategies to come up with in this situation. Lifting both arms, he made the backwards Ram seal. _I'll blow _you _to bits! _Deidara thought angrily.

"Katsu!" He yelled out.

_BOOM_

_BOOM BOOM_

_BOOM_

The boy's eyes widened, his head turned frantically in several directions. Shocked to see that the explosions detonated elsewhere than here. _W-what?_

"Wrong place kid. See, we _real_ ninja don't fall for the same trick twice. After I found out those little things were all over my body, me and the other guy started clearing ourselves of it as fast as we could," Jirou explained with a grin.

The shinobi charged, ready to connect his fist with the child's face.

Deidara yelped, quickly dodging the attack and thrusting both hands into his pockets. He glanced up quickly before dodging again to check on the other ninja, seeing that the other ninja had not yet moved.

The Iwagakure ninja made a low kick, trying to trip him. Deidara responded quickly, moving back and escaping by the tips of his hair. He had to try and avoid making any type of contact with Jirou, or else he was sure he'd explode like the puppy he found.

Leaping back, he made space in between themselves before throwing pre-made clay birds at the Iwagakure ninja. Once in range, Deidara tried to make the hand seal.

"Too slow!" Jirou yelled, pinning both birds with kunai onto the ground.

_No! _In a last attempt, Deidara dug his pockets and pulled out the rest of his remaining birds. He was too late to react for the next thing he knew, his forehead banged painfully against a tree. He felt himself black out for a split second, quickly regaining consciousness fast enough to understand what was going on.

He was pinned against a tree. The bark scraped his cheek while his arms were pinned to his back in Jirou's painful grip. Deidara grit his teeth, trying to resist, wriggling and yanking but the other ninja was too strong. Looking around, he could see all his clay birds impaled to the ground with kunai and shuriken. All of them were struck down. _I don't have enough clay...with the distraction I could get back quickly but..._

"It's useless to try and resist. Besides, you can't detonate those bombs now. You're virtually helpless."

Deidara tensed, feeling his left arm being pulled in an unnatural direction. It was beginning to hurt, the muscles and bones being bent where shouldn't. He felt his eyes tear up, he swallowed again, biting his cheek to stop himself from whimpering and showing weakness.

"Now, to take back what's ours." He heard the unnamed shinobi speak from above on a branch.

The chubbier ninja jumped down and walked over to Deidara. Sliding off the gloves and shoving them into his medical pouch, "You're gonna die once we get back anyway so it's not like you'll need these."

"Yea-ew...right, you still got _those_ don't you kid?" Jirou spoke in a disgusted way.

Now that the gloves were gone, his tiny hands revealed mouths on them. Mouths rowed with human teeth, a completely human tongue stuck out from both. They opened and closed, opening again to make small primal sounds that were barely audible.

"...Desgusti—OW!" Jirou howled loudly after his wrist was bitten by one the hands.

Deidara felt his heart beat faster. He hadn't intended for his hand to do that, he barely really had any control over them, he hadn't mastered the emotions of both his hands. He opened his mouth, trying to excuse himself for biting Jirou.

"I-I'm so sorry! I didn't m-mean to, m-my h-hand just-" He pleaded for forgiveness.

"YOU SNOTTY BRAT!"

_CRACK_

The boy gasped at the shocking pain in his arm, his body stopped moving in utter shock. His eyes were wide and his mouth agape. It was like someone had taken a sword and stabbed his forearm, afterwards, tearing the bones apart from the tissue. His arm went limp, no longer feeling the connection to his left arm's mouth.

His arm was broken.

He felt his body tremble at the realization, Deidara's legs began to shake, making a cold sweat. How easy it was die right now, just anger Jirou and he'd probably snap his neck. Or worse... The blonde's eyes welled with tears, ready to cry out in pain at any minute. He could feel the stares on his back, waiting for him to start wailing right then and there. But he didn't cry, he refused to cry. He wasn't a kid, no matter what his age, no matter what he was called. He wasn't a kid a refused to act like one. Deidara's face scrunched up, sucking in the tears.

"Wow, that's some pain tolerance this kid's got. He didn't even yell." The chubbier one complimented him.

"So what? Better for us. Nobody's gonna come and scold us for hurting a child."

"Hmm, maybe we should break both arms. He won't be making any bombs like that."

"Actually...that's pretty good idea..," Jirou wondered aloud, eventually looking back to Deidara.

His good arm was moving, trying to make a hand seal with a single hand. Jirou frowned at him.

"Stop it kid. I said it's useless. After all, you need both hands to make a hand seal and you don't even have any bombs to detonate.

"I'm...I'm not a kid..." Jirou heard Deidara force the words past his lips. However shaky due to the bundled up fear inside him.

"Oh really? Than what are you?" The chubbier ninja challenged.

"I'm..I'M A_N ARTIST_!" Deidara screamed.

"_KATSU!_"

_BOOM_

_BOOM_

_BOOM_

The explosion was heard all over, shaking the forest. The bombs had managed to create a dust cloud with all the dry earth in the area.

Out of the dust cloud came both Jirou and his partner. A trail of smoke trailed after their bodies as they escaped the explosion. Both Iwagakure ninja stumbled onto the ground, they eyes squinted to keep out the dust.

"Damn! Dammit! A one-handed seal?!" Jirou exclaimed.

* * *

_On the other side of the dust cloud..._

Deidara limped his way out of the dust cloud, coughing and hacking out some dirt and sand that got into his mouth. One hand gripped his broken arm, holding it firm so it wouldn't swing around too much. Limping on his leg since the pain had gotten far worse than before.

"Ack!" He winced, stopping movement for a moment as wound on his leg opened up again. He glared at the ground. _Like this...I'll never get back..._

He made a few minor attempts to continue walking forward. _What am I doing? Why did I even say that? I'm not a ninja...I didn't even get the headband..._Deidara's heart sank at the thought, eventually finding a sturdy tree to lean on. He slid down the tree, still gripping his broken arm like a life-line. _This is it...I'm finished...I can't fight these guys..._His chest rose and fell, breathing heavily for air as his eyes began to lid. His body was burnt out, he didn't have any energy left. The sun was just above the horizon now, almost time to go to bed...

His eyesight blurred, two figures suddenly appeared. Both wearing red uniforms.

_Master...I'm tired...are you happy? Sad?.._

One blurred figure rose his hand up.

_Master...I'm really tired now...can I take a break?_

The clothed-red figure said something he couldn't make out.

_It's almost time to go bed...I can I go to bed now?_

The hand came down on him.

_Master?_


	9. A Dei in the Past

**A Dei in the Past**

_I remember what home was like. The cold mountain air and the nice breeze that would pass through the streets and houses always made me feel good. Kids my age were escorted by their parents to park after school was over. I saw a kid fall off the slide once, his parents came to his aid and actually bandaged up the scraped knee. It was just a scratch, nothing more. It confused me. The kid wasn't seriously hurt, so why did his parents act like it was such a big deal? If it were me, I'd have shrugged it off. _

_I remember thinking "is that what having parents is like?". At first, it seemed pretty stupid to me. Why should some adult with their own problems hold your hand through everything? They'd didn't look like they were getting payed to do it. They just did. _

_Parents. They were definitely different from what a Sensei was like. With nothing at all given back, they mindlessly pamper their children like they're nobility or something. Heck, sometimes they get yelled at in exchange. They spoil their kids._

_Masters and teachers aren't like that. They won't hold your hand through every single thing. They just guide you and teach you what you need to know when something comes up. In the long run, most of your achievements you made yourself. Entirely by your own effort. What achievements you made, those determined your worth. Determined what kind of person you were meant to be. Your hand wasn't held throughout the entire process, you learned and utilized what you learned. _

_I thought it was better to be on your own. Everything you get was earned and didn't stem from some other person's effort only to be your reward, not theirs. I thought having a teacher was better than any parent. But there was something teacher's couldn't give...something that only someone who really cared could give you. _

* * *

"Can I take a break?" Deidara whined, propping his head up on his elbow.

It was a sunny day. However, nothing unusual for the Hidden Stone. It was sunny almost every day, not that anyone was complaining though. Any normal six-year old would either helping their parents shop or playing at the park with their friends. At this time, everybody was at the academy. It the middle of the day, so Deidara knew they were in Taijutsu training right now. But no, he couldn't be with the rest of them. Instead, he was stuck right here at the Iwagakure monument, polishing a stone. He hated this activity; pretty pointless really. Who would waste time putting any effort into polishing a stone? Actually taking the time to stare at a stone for hours on end, looking for spots that needed to by rubbed over with a cloth?

Deidara was. He'd rather work his hands at clay than a stubborn old rock.

He awaited his response from the short old man standing near the monument. This old man was just his height. He had a red nose and triangular beard. Wearing his greying hair up in a traditional Chonmage haircut. This short old man he came to know as Onoki. The famed Third Tsuchikage of Iwagakure.

"No breaks! Not until to polish the symbol of our village until it practically glows with cleanliness!"

_That's gonna take me forever..._

"Yeah right, it's just plain rock no matter how you break it down," Deidara's eyes began to wander the room, thinking over plans for a future sculpture.

Onoki snorted, not liking his pupil's back talk. Slowly, he drifted into the air, floating over to the monument. The child looked up at the Tsuchikage curiously. Onoki moved a hand from his back, picking up the stone that Deidara was currently polishing.

"A Plain rock it may be, but stones like these represent the unbreakable will of this Village! Our rock-hard determination to never give up without a fight!" Onoki made a fist with his other hand.

_This lecture again..,_The boy sighed, blinking a couple of times tiredly. _Might as well get comfortable. _

"I had to do this myself as young boy. I learned under the first Tsuchikage and did all my work to build up that Will of Stone I possess now. I was right here, at your very spot and polished that very stone the entire day! I didn't have time for breaks!"

"So what? I'm not you. Maybe you have the patience to polish a rock but I don't!" Deidara complained.

"Is that an insult?!"

"Yes!"

"Deidara, I am the Third Tsuchikage. I have been around since the second shinobi world war started! Speak better of your elders!" Onoki scolded, causing the boy to wince slightly.

The child mumbled something not quite audible before going into an all out rant, "Like I care! You know, most people wouldn't keep a six-year old locked up in some building! Why can't I go outside anyway!? Or even go to an academy! Kurotsuchi gets to do stuff like that! She can have friends, and train in Taijutsu, and learn about Ninjutsu in the academy! Why can't I go?! I wanna do all those things! I'll study hard! I'll even-"

_BANG_

"Deidara!" Onoki slammed the rock back onto the table loudly, causing the boy to shut up, "I don't want to hear it. Be grateful that I, the great Fence sitter Onoki has even considered to take you in as a student. Be more grateful that I chose you to be my student at all! Such position to most is an honor!"

"But-"

The Tsuchikage pointed his finger at the rock, giving the child a small scare, "The left side is dirty! Polish it!"

Deidara was silent for while, his gaze switching between his teacher and the rock. Contemplating between following orders or saying something else. After weighing his options, he decided to follow orders, after all, Onoki could be scary. Old people were often scary. Huffing, he steadied the stone with his hand and starting polishing with a less than happy look.

"They probably learn more jutsu too..," He grumbled.

"Polish the bottom more, it's getting dirty."

"I got it..," The boy continued to grumble.

Onoki turned to face the wall before sighing exasperatedly, shaking his head. Both arms were behind his back, giving him a more regal look, "You say you want to learn more jutsu yet you haven't even mastered the Earth style: Hidden mole."

"I'm working on it!" Deidara was immediately angered.

"It's a basic C-rank jutsu! Anyone with Earth chakra can do it! If you can't perform even _that _jutsu, than what hope do you have to perform any other jutsu!?" The old Kage countered.

_SPLASH_

Onoki's face twisted into a scowl. He had just watched his pupil throw the symbol of the village right into the pond with no previous hesitation. Normally considered a great offence, this kid had some nerve. The child looked pissed, other hand slammed down on the monument stand. Cloth discarded.

"WHAT IF I TOLD YOU I _DID _MASTER IT!?" Deidara flared.

The old kage didn't speak, taking a few moments in silence before finally raising a skeptical brow. "...You did?"

It took a few seconds for the boy realized what he had just said. Once it sunk in, he immediately regretted his words.

* * *

_Why did I say that? Why did I say that? WHY DID I SAY THAT? _Deidara mentally slapped himself as he stood in the middle of a training field. A bead of sweat trickled down his round face. Onoki stood a few meters away, observing his every move.

"Prove to me that you've mastered the Hidden Mole! Do it then! I want to see it!" He ordered from afar. Obviously doubtful, he continued to talk. "If you do it, I'll teach you something new."

The boy's heart rate started to speed up. In truth, he hadn't mastered the Jutsu at all. Deidara hadn't even practiced! He spent all his time engrossed in his clay art. It was his favorite past time. Now though, he regretted not having spent even a few minutes attempting the Jutsu that all Earth style users should be able to perform. He gulped. _Think of an excuse!_

"W-wait!" Deidara stuttered.

"What is it?" The senior sighed.

"I-I'm not prepared yet!" He stalled.

"Boy, a ninja must always be able to perform his jutsu. That way, he can perform it in unexpected situations. Few enemies will be stupid enough to warn you before they attack so you must be able to perform your ninjutsu on the spot. It should be natural. A ninja who needs to prepare to perform his jutsu is a dead ninja." He paused.

"Besides, the Hidden Mole jutsu requires no preparation."

"But...uh...I can't right now! I need some time to...um..." _This is bad! This is bad! THIS IS BAD! What do I need time for? Time to...time to..._ "I need to use the bathroom! Yeah! I can't focus like this!"

"DO IT NOW OR IT'S ONE-HUNDRED PUSHUPS!"

Deidara winced, eyes closed tightly at the old man's yell. Old men sure were scary, especially when they got angry. Not that he wasn't used to it by now but it's not like enjoyed it every time Onoki would scold him. Great, now he really had to do it. It was two-way road to the same end. He admits he can't do it and suffers the task of one-hundred pushups or he attempts it, fails and still does one-hundred pushups.

_I can't win here can I?_

Defeated, Deidara hesitantly raised both arms and made the Ram Seal. Closing his eyes to focus, he began to build up his Chakra.

_Okay...first, I have to move my chakra down to my feet..._

The violent swirl of his chakra jerked and swished around in his network, slowly moving towards his legs and soon his feet. This step was relatively easier than the other steps, the movement of chakra was basic and known to all who have learned how to control chakra. Deidara included.

_Second, I have to channel it into the ground..._

This step took a few while. Deidara knew the progress was slow and hoped that his master didn't think he was just standing there. It was hard to focus when someone was watching, judging his every movement.

Bits of dust floated off the ground, signalling that the chakra had been channelled, now connected to Deidara.

_Next...the hardest part...getting underground..._

Deidara gulped, he didn't like this part very much. It was risky since he was scared that if he went underground, he might loose focus and get stuck under there. And knowing that there was no light underground as well as a lack of air and possibly other things...Deidara was pretty sure that if the situation came along, he'd freak out and pass out from lack of air. He didn't feel he was ready to face a situation like that. This part was the entire reason why whenever he _did _practice, he'd stop at step two because he feared going underground. He hadn't mentioned it to Onoki yet because he dreaded the idea that he would be teased for cowardice.

_Come on! Just let me do it once! ONCE!_

_THUD_

He felt the ground clear beneath his feet. Harshly cracking and breaking to create a hole for the user to descend. However, momentary fear of the next step prevented Deidara from continuing the jutsu.

_I lost focus...but did I do it?_ Silence was all the boy could hear. Fearfully, he cracked open an eye. Looking around, he could tell that he was above ground because of the sunlight. Definitely not underground.

"Is that it?" He heard Onoki's gruff voice question him.

In response, Deidara was suddenly fully aware of his situation. In panic, he looked around him. The ground had returned to normal like it was supposed to once the jutsu had finished. But as it seemed, the jutsu ended prematurely. The earth had swallowed up his legs up to his knees. Deidara tried to pull them out, yanking at it. Unfortunately for him, it seemed he was firmly planted into the ground. Stuck.

"So it seems...you didn't master it, Deidara." Onoki said in a dissapointed tone.

The boy made an awkward expression. Feeling a little stupid and screwed at the same time. He scratched the back of his head and tried to seem even a little innocent. "Haha...I guess not..,"

* * *

_Back then, I didn't have much to worry about. Onoki was my master who took me in since a young age. I didn't remember –and still don't –a time when he wasn't my mentor. If I didn't know he was too old to be a parent, I would have thought he was my father. I argued a lot with him, and I'll be honest, I never really saw him beyond being an old man with bad attitude. _

_The lack of parents guiding me didn't bother me in the slightest. I grew up fine. Onoki never really was around to be a father figure anyway but I still looked up to him, even if he was an old cranky man. Onoki had a granddaughter to fill in the loneliness, often visited the tower just to see me. She was my best friend at the time along with another kid, a lot like the sister I never had._

_As an Explosion Corps trainee, even I couldn't keep a very stable bond with her. We still passed each other in the hallway without a word sometimes, simply because we had nothing to converse about. I had training to do and she had studying. My other friend, Akatsuchi, had the exact same situation. _

_Both me and her were in the same situation. We could both use Kekkei Genkai, something that usually only advanced ninja's could use. Naturally, she was put into the highest level course in the academy while I trained harder than any other student. We were both valuable to the future of the village, or so my mentor had always said. Probably in attempt to boost my esteem._

* * *

Kurotsuchi grumbled and crossed her arms, bag slung over her shoulder. Deidara hadn't showed up after the academy today. Both of them along with Akatsuchi had planned to play after academy hours were over. All of them had promised to show up, but it seemed to her that big-bro Deidara broke his promise.

"Stupid Dei...I mean, you can't promise to people to show up on time but never actually do. Who does he think he is?" She muttered to herself.

The streets of Iwagakure were emptier now. The sun was beginning to set and the shadows had darkened and stretched. A cold breeze blew some laundry hanging from a clothing line up ahead while the trees rustled their leaves. However, no matter how cold the wind, it hadn't managed to cool down Kurotsuchi's boiling temper.

"I'm gonna smack him the next time we meet." She growled.

The girl could imagine now, passing by the Tsuchikage's residence and seeing Deidara. Walking up to him and hearing the satisfying crack of his neck after giving him a good hard slap to the face. Kurotsuchi smiled sadistically and walked a little faster.

Yeah, that would definitely teach him.

A little walk later, the Tsuchikage's residence came into better view. It towered above all other buildings, casting the largest shadow away from the setting sun. Reaching far into the reddening sky. It was getting colder now, signs that night was coming.

Being the Tsuchikage's granddaughter, Kurotsuchi had free reign over whatever she wanted to do near the Kage residence. While most people living in the village would pass by around the area, she could go right through. No walls or wire fences would keep her at bay, after all, Kurotsuchi and her little gang were known for causing trouble. Of course, she wasn't the most famous in her little group for sparking a fight. Starting fights was another kid's job. Who was that kid? Well, that very kid was the kid she was looking to smack.

As mentioned before, the place had wire fences all over. Though some electrical, Kurotsuchi knew well to which one's weren't. Walking up to a wire fence, she looked up casually at it before jumping on and clinging to the fence. Scaling up with ease, she reached the top before jumping down. Kurotsuchi was within the Tsuchikage's area now, but she couldn't get in trouble. After all, being the granddaughter meant she could do whatever whenever; and the girl was rather happy to have such privileges.

Doing this a couple more times, she was finally halfway through. Now reaching the backyard of the mansion. Scaling up and jumping down like the many times she had before. Looking up from the ground, her attentions easily were turned away from her thoughts.

Right in the middle of the yard, she could see a blonde boy sitting on the ground. His head propped up on his arm. Staring the wall. If she were anyone else, they'd have thought he was a girl, but Kurotsuchi new her friend too well to mistaken him for the opposite gender.

"Deidara?"

In response to his name, Deidara's head whipped over to her direction. Both kids exchanged surprised looks as a cold breeze swept over the yard.

"Kurotsuchi?"

A silence was heard. Suddenly, Kurotsuchi darted over to Deidara, moving quickly right in front of him, winding back her right hand.

_WHAP_

Of course, the satisfying crack of the neck was not heard for Deidara wasn't that weak. Simply, he was facing away from Kurotsuchi now, a large red hand printed on his cheek.

"Where were you! Me and Akatsuchi waited but you never showed up!" The girl yelled.

Deidara frowned angrily, putting soothing hand over his sore cheek. He glared back at her, opening his mouth to snap back at her.

"What was tha-"

"Where you just sitting here the entire day?! Sitting here on your lazy butt!?"

"I'm not lazy you flat-chested airhead!"

Kurotsuchi was taken aback by the insult, highly offended as an embarrassed blush appeared on her face.

"Who's a flat-chested airhead?!"

"You are!"

"Well if I'm a flat-chested airhead, then so are you!"

"No way! I'm only flat-chested 'cause I'm not a girl!"

"Maybe not, but you sure look like one!"

"Geeze! What's your problem anyway! Are all girls like this or something?! Randomly slapping people?!" Deidara shot up from his seat.

"WHAT DID YOU- huh?" The girl paused mid-sentence, a puzzled look took over her expression.

"Yeah! You heard me! What's with girls anyway?" The boy continued, thinking he won the argument.

"Wait, wait, wait. Aren't you supposed to be..," Kurotsuchi stopped him, using a confused tone.

"What? I'm supposed to be what?"

"...You're supposed to be taller than me."

"Eh?" Deidara furrowed his eyebrows before starting to compare their height.

Indeed, the girl was a whole head taller than the other. Looking down to his legs, Kurotsuchi identified the cause for the height reduction. Reacting by covering her mouth with her hand in attempt to stifle a laugh.

Reminding himself of his situation, Deidara blushed in embarrassment, "H-hey!"

"W-what the- what the heck happened?!" The black-haired girl managed in between giggles.

In his rage, Deidara balled up his fists, considering slapping her back for the smack he got earlier. However, thinking again lead him to realize that doing so probably wouldn't be a good idea. Seeing little choice in the matter, Deidara huffed angrily and plopped down onto the ground. Crossing his arms in a grumble. After all, what could he do? He was firmly planted into the ground to knee-length and couldn't move. The only thing he _could _do was sit and stand.

At this point, Kurotsuchi was bending over in laughter. Her stomach hurt because it was so funny that she could barely take it. She'd seen dud's performed by classmates that were bad, but she had never seen this bad of a fluke.

"Come on! Tell me!"

"I'll tell you if you shut up!" The boy spat.

"Fine, fine!"

Kurotsuchi turned around and breathed a couple of times. However, the smirk still tugged at her lips at the thought of her friend knee-deep into the dirt; and stuck there to add to it. She bent over and glared hard at the ground, trying to breathe away her laughter. Once she thought she could relax, Kurotsuchi turned back around with a calmer expression.

With a sigh, the blonde managed to get up and explain his story.

"I got in trouble," He said flatly.

"Duh! You get into trouble every other week!" Kurotsuchi remarked.

"Shut up! Okay? Just listen!" Deidara growled at her.

"Whatever."

"Look. I had to do this stupid rock cleaning thing today. That's all I did. I got frustrated and asked if I could do something else and then your grandpa gave me the lecture. Then I...I _kinda _said I mastered the hidden mole..."

"Go on," Kurotsuchi's voice faltered slightly. The smirk was tugging at her lips again, it seemed impossible to ignore that it looked like the ground had glitched.

Without noticing the change in tone, he kid continued, "He brought me out here and said that I had to perform the hidden mole right here in front of him. If I didn't, he said I had to do a hundred push ups. It's not like a had a choice so I tried it...and here I am."

Deidara slouched on the spot and hung his head. He had been standing in the same spot for hours. Dinner was nearing and he was getting pretty hungry. Of course, like this, he couldn't do those hundred push ups he was ordered to do so the Tsuchikage thought it appropriate that instead, Deidara would try to get himself out of the ground before dinner. If he didn't do it before dinner, than he'd go without. The kid got himself into this mess, he'd have to find a way to dig himself out of it. In both meanings of the phrase.

"So you gonna help me or what?" The boy looked up, only to be met with Kurotsuchi stifling another laugh.

"WHAT ARE YOU LAUGHING AT?!" Deidara expoded.

"I'M SORRY! I'M SO SORRY BUT- PFFT!"

"JUST SHUT UP AND HELP ME!" He flailed his arms desperately.

"OKAY, OKAY! CALM DOWN!"

_"__YOU CALM DOWN!"_

* * *

_Yeah, she wasn't perfect._

_Even then, I felt lonely. None of the academy kids really liked me, since I didn't go to the academy. It wasn't anything personal, but making bonds and keeping them were hard with our separate lives. I didn't want to go to the academy that bad, but I felt like I could show things off there. My life wasn't empty yet. _

_I had my art, sculptures I created at my leisure to wile away the time. It started out as a simple hobby, but grew to an obsession after a month passed since I first laid my hands on ball of clay. I wasn't sure why, but I felt like art was a calling, a sensation that was completely different from training or learning a new jutsu –not that I knew many at the time. _

_Onoki didn't like my art. He saw it as a waste of time, the equivalent of chewing gum or stuffing one's face with food when they weren't hungry. Or lying down for a nap instead of studying for a test._

_That was an irk about Onoki I didn't quite like. It drew me away from him a little, always criticizing it. I felt angered, but kept it in. _

* * *

"Clay? Again?"

"Hm?" Deidara looked up from the bench, pausing his molding to pay attention to his mentor.

Onoki stood tall over the child, bottom lip pushed upwards in disapproval as he glared down the half-finished lizard in the child's hands, though resembling more of a snake. The whole body was finished, though only the front legs had been formed at all. The back legs were still but tiny studs pinched into the material, yet to be molded to perfection.

"You play with your clay when you could be improving your hidden mole. Or doing something more productive."

"I like art," The child muttered under his breath, shrugging back from the old man.

"You may like art, but art won't protect our village. That's where shinobi come in."

"I know that..."

Onoki sighed and beckoned the boy, "Fine. If you will not listen, we will practice. I have some ninja here who could help you."

* * *

Onoki watched a practice battle between Gari and his student. Though Deidara was now admitted as a trainee under the Explosion Corps, he was not a ninja and didn't possess the headband. However, everything was set. He had the skills and he had the general education that most of the ninja here had. The only thing Deidara needed now was to learn how to perform the hidden mole, the most basic jutsu in any earth style user's arsenal.

The standards were different depending on how a person would fight. For sure, someone who possessed water style chakra wouldn't be able to perform the hidden mole unless they had two chakra natures and it wouldn't be a requirement for them to do it to pass as a ninja. Here in Iwagakure, if you had a chakra nature, you had to be able to perform at least one jutsu with it. Deidara was only allowed to go this far since he possessed explosive release and was able to utilize it, but detonating anything wasn't considered a jutsu.

If he couldn't master even that jutsu, than Deidara would never become a ninja. So Onoki pushed the child further, feeling as if his art hobby would drag him down without support.

On the field, Gari was accompanied by some other Iwagakure ninja, presumably some friends of his. From what he could see on the other side of the clearing, Deidara seemed nervous. He couldn't blame the kid, he was facing against three chunin to jonin level ninja. One of them in particular was Gari, a high ranking member of a fairly famous Corps in the main military force. It was no wonder Deidara seemed so stiff. He couldn't disappoint.

It was his first training session with anyone above Chunin-level and wasn't the third Tsuchikage himself. Not only that, but Deidara had never faced against more than two opponents before, and usually when he did, those two would just be at genin-level. This was a completely new ball game now, fighting more than two opponents is different from fighting a duo or one on one. When fighting one on one, it'd be easy to keep an eye on your opponent and predict their moves. When fighting a duo, you'd just have to remember there was more than one person and never get too focused on a single enemy. However, with three, simple luck and whit was all you could go on. A keen eye helps too and plenty of trust in one's own instincts.

That was why having the hidden mole was so useful. If caught in a group attack, Deidara could simply use it to escape and move underground. Doing that would break up the formation and he could easily ambush one ninja from below. As long as there was earth around, he would have the advantage. Retreating is also an easy task. Being able to perform the hidden mole was just as important as knowing how to perform the substitution jutsu. Escape methods were always favourable, for being able to do it could mean the difference between life or death.

Gari grinned confidently and leaned on one leg with crossed arms, "You ready? We're gonna start..."

In response, the child nodded stiffly while holding a kunai. Deidara fell into a battle position, ready to attack, escape, or defend. He didn't know how to fight three on one, but he'd try.

It was then that Deidara began to wonder how Gari would react if he surrendered.

"Okay..."

He felt a bead of sweat roll down his face.

"START!"

Immediately, the three ninja disappeared, causing the boy's eyes to widen in shock before quickly looking around to look for the enemy. No sooner than he, did a kick was aimed mere inches away from his head. On instinct, Deidara ducked and jumped, gripping at the ground with his gloved hand to stop himself from sliding back.

_They're-_

Right at the stop, Deidara felt the presence of another ninja behind himself and turned around. Dodging just before a blow was made to his chest. Gritting his teeth, he felt the pressure of the battle weigh him down.

Thinking was also harder, as he continued to dodge blows from several directions. Left, right, right, behind. The attacks became more and more frequent as he dodged. By now, Deidara was fully aware that the only thing saving him from this was his speed.

"Aren't you fast?!"

His head whipped upwards as he stepped back, eyes widening at the sight of Gari just above him, ready to send a heel drop right down on his face. His breath hitched and he quickly cart wheeled out the way before the kick made contact. Back flipping back to his feet, he flicked away his bang for a second with his jaw agape. That was a close one for sure, any later and he'd definitely be in trouble.

Quickly, he was suddenly surrounded as all three ninja appeared in a triangular formation with him at the centre. Glancing around wearily, Deidara shoved his hand into his weapons pouch, ready to grab a kunai or shuriken at a moment's notice.

"It's a good thing you're so speedy. Keep it up!" Gari complimented, "Why not use that explosive chakra of yours? You're free to use it you know. It won't kill us."

_But I'm not good at taijutsu...not like you._

"I know!" Deidara retorted.

"Well then, let's step it up shall we?" The taijutsu specialist glanced at the other two Iwagakure ninja who nodded in agreement, grins on their faces.

The fight began quickly as one of the ninja threw a barrage of shuriken in Deidara's direction. Pulling out a kunai and spinning it on his finger, the child blocked all of the shuriken and sent them flying towards the ground. In a surprise attack, a kick was sent to his head by the same shinobi mere centimeters from his face. With no time to dodge, Deidara blocked with both arms and was sent flying back by the force.

_SNAP_

He yelped as he rolled to the ground, scraping his elbow and ankle on the dirt.

Looking up, he felt his breath hitch again as one of the shinobi was right above him, ready to make the finishing blow with his fist.

* * *

"Ow..."

Deidara winced as the medical ninja placed a cast around his arm. During the training session, he ended fracturing his forearm.

Currently, he was sitting in a medical room that resided in the Tsuchikage tower. He had been here many times before, one time, he came because got a burn from one of his explosions. His entire hand was singed and had to be bandaged up for an entire two weeks before they let him take it off. That part itched like hell. Sleeping was a struggle then because he had to fight off the urge to scratch his hand and risk damaging it further.

Now, he had a broken arm. The pain hurt like hell but he didn't wince. Heck, he didn't even notice it was broken until he tried to dodge one the attacks by using this arm to drag himself out of the way. Luckily, Gari had seen that something was wrong and had it checked up. It was rather apparent that the bone was broken after the swelling became visible.

He'd never had a broken a bone before. It felt strange, like something sharp was poking the flesh inside his skin. This caused the boy refuse moving his arm for fear that whatever was poking out would suddenly break the skin, and Deidara really didn't want to see what a bone looked like. Especially his own.

_It's probably pretty gross..._

"U-um, lady?" He spoke in a stutter.

The medical-nin twitched at the rude name but quickly ignored it, forcing a pleasant smile, "Yes?"

"How b-bad is it? It hurts a lot."

"Just a greenstick fracture. It's common in children, not much to worry about."

_Greenstick? That's a weird name for it._

Deidara watched as the medical-nin finished wrapping up his arm. Patting it a few times to make sure it's stiff, she made a sound of satisfaction and turned to the child.

"It should be okay for now. This should take at least two weeks to heal so don't move it until then. My healing jutsu can only do so much."

Nodding, the boy stood up, careful not to move it too much. Scared that more pain would come if he moved it even an inch.

"Normally, it'd take six weeks or more but I've sped up the process. I suggest you don't train meanwhile."

"Okay, thanks."

Deidara stood up and left. Once out the door, he was greeted by Gari and his friends who were sitting anxiously outside. Gari looked over first, a concerned look on his face.

"So what did she say?"

"It'll take two weeks." He murmured.

One of them sighed loudly and let his head drop, catching everyone's attention, "It's only the first session and we already broke you..."

"Haha..," Another one of Gari's friend's laughed and scratched the back of his head, looking up at the blonde kid, "Sorry, we haven't trained we anyone younger than ten for a long time. Guess we were a little too rough."

"Yeah, you were..." Deidara frowned and pointed at him, "...um..."

"Oh yeah, I didn't exactly get to introduce them," Gari blinked and started pointing towards each friend.

"That's Sato..," He pointed to guy who just spoke. Sato waved.

"And this is Su," He gestured towards the male who hung his head. Su looked up expectantly, now paying attention after his name was called.

"I guess you can't train now thanks to us. Tell me when you get better and we'll continue, okay?"

"Okay."

Gari nodded and got up. Putting his hands in his pockets before leaving. Both Sato and Su followed in suite, tailing the Explosion Corps member down the hall. Deidara couldn't help but glare slightly at the guy who kicked him and broke his arm. His first day fighting chunin and he's already out. He was so close, so close to getting promoted to genin but it wasn't enough. Gari had told him earlier that because he couldn't perform the hidden mole, the easiest earth style jutsu, that he couldn't be promoted.

Just the thought of that jutsu, it scared him. Deidara hated the idea of being in that kind of situation. Anything could go wrong, and the possibilities...

Well, it wasn't all bad. Granted, creating his art would be harder, but Onoki wouldn't complain with his broken arm. He could go into the night if he wanted, creating every animal he had ever read or seen. Deidara smiled, a wave of relief washing over him.

No stress on being a ninja.


	10. Dolphin-horse

**Dolphin-Horse**

_My clay. I had first touched clay when I was only six years old. Back then, I wandered the village freely without much training to deal with. Onoki didn't do much with me but higher tutors to cover over the academics like reading, writing, basic mathematics and science as well as some general geography. Taijutsu was also a subject I was tutored, but it was my least favourite subject. _

_I had a friend back then. He was the kindest adult I'd ever known. We often talked and he always seemed to understand when I felt frustrated with something. With his big hulking body, I should have been scared out of my mind, but I found it difficult to even comprehend that notion. _

_Han._

* * *

"How's the clay I gave you?" The voice vibrated slightly behind the mask, two eyes peeking out from the armour. A kindness shown in them, though shadowed over by the rice hat over his head. An arm remained in his kimono, held over the bright red iron plates that covered his entire body.

Han stared down the small child standing at his feet. Deidara had been his only friend since that day. They had agreed to meet out in the forest, where no one would disturb them.

"I love it!" Deidara exclaimed before his face fell, "But...you already know that."

"Haha, I just wanted to ask you again," Han chortled.

The two sat at a clearing, rested in bright green grass as the mid-day sun beat down on them. It was a hot summer day, the two sat at the base of a tree. Deidara smiled and rested his head against the armour plating covering Han's arm. He never knew why, but Han always seemed to only talk to him here. Sure, they saw each other in public, but all contact then would be discouraged as the child discovered. The other would always apologize when they met.

It was a nice break to have, away from the constant shouts and barks he would get back at training or the cold silence of the Tsuchikage tower. The village always bustled with people, only to become similar to the halls of the Kage residence when it rained, as if the water that came down would kill whoever dared to step under the clouds.

"Hey Han."

"Hm?"

Deidara shifted from his spot and held his bag between his legs, fishing out the pouch of clay. Giving a grunt of satisfaction, the blond pulled it out and presented the clay to the elder man.

"Wanna try?"

Han blinked, carefully taking the pouch out of the child's grasp. Han always noticed, the difference in size between both of their hands. How his seemed so large and dangerous while Deidara's was small and chubby, like all other children his age.

Putting down the pouch, Hand slipped his gloves off and placed them by his side. Rolling the ball of clay onto his hand, he stared at it, confused.

Deidara eyed Han in anticipation, "What are you gonna make!?"

"Umm, I don't...know."

"How about a horse? Horses are cool," The child clapped his hands, "Or a bird! I always make those!"

Han lidded his eyes, rolling the tiny clay between his large hands until it was completely spherical. Rolling it again, the clay became cylinder shaped, a sausage-like form though not quite long enough to be a snake. Pinching at the back half, Han created four stubs and elongated them, four thick legs protruding from the middle of the clay shape. Lifting one end up, that end became a head, though it seemed to have four ears instead of two like Deidara expected. At the back end, the long tail was split into five parts, which the child could only interpret as some kind of hair for the horse's end.

Even then, something about the shape of the head didn't quite resemble a horse, though the body was obviously that of a stallion. Deidara furrowed his eyebrows in puzzlement, looking up to his friend.

"What's that?"

Han seemed to hesitate, "It's...a creature I created. A dolphin-horse."

"A dolphin-horse? Wait, what's a dolphin?"

Han's eyes were casted towards the ground, almost solemn, "It's an animal that lives in the ocean. A whale though much smaller. It has the head of a dolphin and the body of a horse. They're supposed to be really friendly."

"Have you seen one before?"

The armoured man met Deidara's eyes again, wide in wonder and curiosity. Han had to be honest, he had never been to the ocean. Normally, someone like him wouldn't know of such animals, but even then, he knew. He didn't want to lose Deidara, he was the only friend he had, despite the massive age gap.

He couldn't tell him.

"I saw it...in a dream once. I looked it up and it was real."

"Eh? That's so cool!"

"Is it? Haha...you're the artist, not me. I can't make any good sculptures, no matter how many times I try."

Deidara blinked, "Me?...an artist?"

Han sighed and handed the clay back to the child before leaning forward to prop both elbows on his knees, gazing out into the forest, "I've seen your stuff kid, you'll be a great artist someday."

"You really think so?"

"I know so."

Deidara stared at Han with disbelief, then looked down at the dolphin-horse in his hands, "Th-thanks I guess."

"No problem."

* * *

_If only we had stayed that way, then maybe I wouldn't have harboured the hatred only Han was supposed to have between the two of us._

* * *

"_Deidara! Get back!_"

Said child yelped loudly, the back of his kimono jacket being yanked into the stomach of the shinobi. Regaining his ground, the blond looked on, eyes wide in fear as the other ninja glared Han down.

"_You __**demon!**_ _Did you hurt him!? Did you hurt this poor kid?_"

"No, I didn't," Han replied, voice low.

The sky began to cloud over, the once sunny sky now grey. The world had greyed along with it, once brightly coloured trees and grass now seemed to become dull and foreboding. Two ninja's had coming looking for the child, Onoki having decided to call for another training session but Deidara was no where to be found, not in his room as he usually was.

One ninja pinned the child to his stomach, while the other stood in the gap between Deidara and Han. Icy glares stared solely at the armoured man, threatening to make a move or attack. Han noticed as tears began to well up in the blond's blue eyes, quickly averting his gaze as to not see. He didn't need to see it, not that look.

"_Han_!" Deidara yelled out, however quickly muffled as the shinobi hissed at him, telling him not to 'provoke' him, or the armoured man as it seemed he was referring to.

"Get away from here! _Leave_!

He lowered his head in defeat, hat covering his face as the other turned and began to walk, ignoring the screams that Deidara emitted, yelling after him. As the Tsuchikage's student, Han should have seen the end to it all. No doubt, one day the others would find out, and his only friend would disappear.

"_HAN! __**HAN!**_"

* * *

_They told me I wasn't old enough to understand, why I couldn't be friends with Han. I protested still, demanding to know why and what was so bad about just hanging out with the guy. They sealed their mouths shut, sparking anger with every time I uttered his name. _

_Pretty, soon, I had turned my back on the world. My art was the only thing that really mattered. Being a shinobi, being a ninja, being a genin, didn't matter to me. I was born and told that was my purpose in life, to protect the village once I had been trained to condition. I hadn't had a choice, I had no word in my future. _

_I still wanted to impress Sensei, since he was the only one I had now. I scarcely saw Kurotsuchi anymore, since she had gained other friends in the Academy. She still called me by that stupid nickname, but I found her company to be...dull compared to the company that Han provided. Han actually liked my art, and supported my interests and views. Kurotsuchi begged to differ, thinking the same as my mentor and told me time and time again that art was boring or a waste of time. Like grandfather like granddaughter right?_

* * *

"Train with you?" Onoki repeated with a raised brow.

The boy nodded and bowed low, long blonde bang hanging on his face. The Tsuchikage gazed down at his student, who had approached him out of no where all of sudden.

"Please! You're better than my tutor..." Deidara pleaded.

The old man started to stroke his triangular beard in thought. Making a low humming sound as he wondered about what to say. Deidara grit his teeth, he really didn't like his tutor, anything but his tutor, even Onoki.

"You know, I would've told you to do the same thing if it came to it," Said the old geezer, "Would this really change anything?"

"Please!"

"No."

Deidara straightened up and gave the old man the most serious look a six-year old could give. This surprised the kage, who rarely saw the child so serious.

"You have to! You're my master, and...and...I'm your...student."

Onoki continued to stroke his beard. Seeming to think it over. The boy had never looked so dead-set on something before. He was told that Deidara was a slow-learner from his tutor. Though, doing anything but training seemed to be a rare sight these days.

_A slow-learner huh?_

"...I suppose that's how it goes, isn't it?"

"Ah-yeah! You're supposed to teach me! Not him!"

"...Heh! Fine! I'll do it," The old man smirked.

The look on Deidara's face brightened, a large wide smile grew on his face as he immediately began to jump for joy. He couldn't stand that tutor, not for another minute. If he heard another sigh from that guy again, he'd definitely blow something up.

"Heh! But don't think I'll go easy on you. I am Onoki! The great fence-sitter! The leader and kage of this village! I'm on a completely different level than those brats who taught you before."

* * *

Onoki watched from afar, though it didn't show very much on his face, he was rather impressed with how quickly the boy picked up on the basic uses of his explosive chakra. He could understand why the tutor he had assigned barely touched upon this subject, for the tutor didn't have this kind of chakra and probably knew next to nothing about it. Gari definitely hadn't been teaching Deidara at all since he underwent training under the explosion corps. If he did, than the boy would've known that he could possibly do this.

The explosion release, a kekkei genkai that was so highly valued that an entire Corps was created surrounding it. Though not all members had it, as long as they mainly used explosions in their fighting style, they would be part of the explosion corps. However glorified it may be in this village, the kekkei genkai was still dangerous to even its user. Though he was aware that Deidara utilized this ability outside of battle for pranks and games to amuse his friends, he used it carefully and was never aware of what it could cause if used at its full extent. He was only seven-years old, without proper instruction who knows what he might do with this in the future? Onoki had seen it before, blown off arms or a hand singed from the inside out. Common injuries that those who possessed the explosion release would have if they didn't control their kekkei genkai. It's better to teach him early than to wait for it to happen. After all, Deidara was the youngest person he had ever seen to have unlocked his kekkei genkai second to his own granddaughter, Kurotsuchi. Most wouldn't unlock theirs until they were thirteen or twenty.

Though some may say it's a good thing to have unlocked it so early, Onoki knew that this was dangerous. Highly dangerous for a child especially. This was another reason why the old man had taken him under his wing and made him live within the Tsuchikage tower.

Deidara would have to learn quickly how to fully control something like this. Teaching the boy how to control his kekkei genkai was like teaching a four-year old how to prevent cutting himself with a kunai that was permanently glued to his hand.

"Good," Onoki said.

The boy turned to him, surprised to see that the Tsuchikage had praised his work. Feeling rather proud, Deidara looked at his hands, wondering what else he could do with this.

"I have to go to another meeting soon, but before I do, I want to talk to you about something."

Deidara blinked before making his way towards his master. Looking up at him as he floated in mid-air.

"Your kekkei genkai is known at the explosion release."

"Yeah, I know that," The blonde nodded.

"However, now that you know what it can _really _do, I don't want you to use it."

"Eh? Why!?" Deidara exclaimed.

"-_When_ I'm not around. Unless I permit you to, you are forbidden from using it. This is for you're own safety. If you break this rule than I promise you the consequences will be **very **dire! Did I make this clear?"

Deidara wanted to argue, speak out against this. He wanted to see it again, see something large like that boulder blast into pieces. What was wrong with that? It was practice too wasn't it?

"Deidara!" Onoki snapped the boy out of his thoughts, "I asked whether or not I made this clear enough for you. Should I repeat?"

"N-no master..."

"Good! Than I shall take my leave."

Leaving it, the Tsuchikage started to rise up to the top of the canyon, disappearing behind the cliff. Deidara's eyes had followed until he was gone. Mentally, he began to wonder how Onoki could fly like that. Just float and stuff, like a cloud.

"You know, he's right."

Deidara blinked and turned around. Across the canyon sat a man wearing the Iwagakure uniform sitting on a stone. This man came from Iwagakure, so no surprise there. He wasn't dangerous.

"What?"

"He's right you know," The man stood up from his seat and shoved his hands into his pockets, "A kid like you blowing things up without any kind of control? You could yourself hurt without proper supervision."

"I'm not a kid!" Deidara huffed.

"Sure you aren't," The man rolled his eyes, "Anyway, don't you think that'll just slow down your training? You're obviously good at it."

"...I am?"

"Yeah. You know, I don't think the third is so strict with this rule. As long as _someone_ qualified is around, you should be fine."

"Really? So, as long I'm with a jonin, I can practice it?" Deidara pointed to himself.

"Exactly, but not just any jonin. You have explosion release so he'd probably only allow explosion corps members to look after you. After all, only they know what's right and what's not," The shinobi shrugged.

"Oh," The boy sighed, the guy was right. It only made sense after all.

"Heh, Gari's so lazy. He should've order one of us to do it to get you off our hands. Not every member is too excited about you you know?"

"Wait, does that mean..." Deidara's eyes widened slightly.

"Does that mean what?"

"You're...you're part of the corps right!? You can watch me!"

"Hmm..," The man crossed his arms and gave the boy a good look from head to toe. "Well, I guess I have the time."

"Please!?" The boy urged on.

"Okay kid, sure, I'll do it."

"Yes!" Deidara started to jump around happily.

"Hold up, don't you think you should ask my name first? I mean, you don't even know me."

"Huh? Oh, righ,." He scratched the back of his head awkwardly before bowing. "I'm Deidara. Who are you?"

At the question, the man smirked.

"Me? The name's Jirou."

* * *

_Jirou. _

_The man who turned my life around, and not in a good way. _


	11. The Pain to Progress

**The Pain to Progress**

Soon, the sun was setting and the day was almost over. The two took a break at a bench on the edge of the cliff and watched as the sun floated over the horizon, surrounded by the blood-red sky that vaguely reminded Deidara of what fall leaves looked like.

"You know, I wonder why everyone wants to be a ninja."

"Huh?" Jirou glanced at him from the corner of his eye.

"I mean, I can do all the stuff every other genin can do. It's just, I can't do the hidden mole. I make clay sculptures but Master thinks it's a waste of time. Art isn't so bad. He says art can't protect the village though. I don't mind being a ninja, but I feel like it's the only way that people will look at my art."

"Wait, you can't do the hidden mole?"

"...No..," He mumbled the answer, rolling his eyes.

Jirou chuckled slightly,"So you wanna be a ninja that bad huh? I think you have to impress lord third first. And with what you can do, doesn't look like that'll happen any time soon."

Deidara's face fell, immediately realizing that again, the guy was right. He didn't know any jutsu or any technique that would impress Onoki. If anything, nothing he could do was good enough. His shuriken jutsu? Definitely nothing worth taking note of. A genin? That goal sounded pretty far off now. Unlike Kurotsuchi or Akatsuchi, he didn't have any special test. No, exam, no grades, no homework, no nothing. All he had to do was master one measly jutsu and that's all that Deidara would need. But he couldn't even do that.

There was nothing particularly remarkable about any of his abilities except his kekkei genkai. However, it was made perfectly clear that his kekkei genkai wouldn't make him a genin.

"Actually, I think there _might _be a way to impress Lord Tsuchikage, and that could incorporate your art!"

Immediately, Deidara's head shot up and looked at him with anticipation. Jirou suppressed a laugh, the kid looked like he was about to be told the answer to every question in the universe. Who knows? Maybe he was. Didn't matter really, he just needed to get this kid to agree with him.

Jirou smirked for a second before turning his head away, "But then again, I _think,_ I don't _know._"

"U-um, can you...tell me?"

"Tell you?"

"Tell me how to do it? I want to impress master! I do! "

_Great, now he'll just have to agree._

"Look Deidara, everyone wants to impress the kage, but if you're serious, I _could _show you how, but you'll have to be dedicated. No turning back."

At this point, the boy was wordlessly begging him to tell. It was written all over his face, that he wanted Jirou to spill the beans already.

"Okay, okay, you can stop looking at me like that, I'll tell you."

Deidara blinked and leaned back, not wanting to get completely out of the shinobi's favour. He needed to know this, he needed to know how to do this. Completely intent on memorizing every word that came out of Jirou's mouth.

"You see..."

* * *

The two stood outside a run-down building on the outskirts of the village. Near it, was what probably used to be a settlement of some kind. Now, the area was filled with wooden houses that already succumbed to the wrath of nature.

Deidara couldn't help but feel a little uncomfortable here. Standing inside the cool, stone-walled hallways. Looking over his shoulder, he stared at the door he had just walked through. A small breeze had made its way inside, successfully giving Deidara goosebumps. Above him were ceiling lights that probably had seen better days. Already, dead bugs had piled within the outer plastic near the broken bulb. Dark walls were crawling with vines that dug large cracks across the concrete. What Deidara assumed was moss had grown in patches on the wall.

Without any lights on, the place was rather dark and a bit foreboding. The broken-glass windows let in rays of the last remaining bits of sunlight before it was to be completely dark. This place had bad vibe about it, and Deidara didn't like it.

Ahead of him, Jirou continued down the hallway. Not wanting to be left behind, Deidara followed closely and stayed by his back.

"It's almost bed-time...should we really be here?"

"Don't be silly. You're not a kid right?"

"I'm not!" Deidara snapped before jumping at the sound of a bat fly off from behind him. Glancing over his shoulder, he beginning to get a cold sweat, "...It's just, what is this place?"

"Glad to hear it. This place is an old laboratory used in the second shinobi world war," Jirou replied wand glanced at him from the corner of his eye, "You learned about that right?"

"World war? You mean like the one master stopped?"

"Did you learn about any of the shinobi wars?" The Iwa nin looked back at him.

"I think..," Deidara held up his hand to count, "...There were...three wars right?"

"Yeah. This facility was used in the second one."

The blonde's eyes were quickly distracted as they walked by a room. The door had rusty hinges and was slightly ajar. Though not by much, the door was open wide enough for him to see inside. Without a second thought as they passed by, Deidara glanced in. His breath hitched, seeing some red and black substance splashed against the wall. His eyes widened and he whipped his head away, not wanting to see more. Luckily, it was too dark in the room to see anything. But for a second, Deidara thought he saw something slumped against the floor. Not that he was sure what it was.

"J-Jirou?" Deidara stuttered, the picture still fresh in his mind as he imagination began to take him places.

"Yeah?"

"I...I saw something in that room. It was red and black looking, and I think there was something on the ground. What was it?"

_Dammit, did that guy not bury those bodies? I'll talk to him later..._

"Probably just some dead animal. It's been quite a few years, I wouldn't be surprised if this place became a home for foxes or coyotes. If it's that bloody than it's probably a wolverine or a wolf. Relax, they won't approach us. Not while I'm around."

A bit of relief came to Deidara as he quickly let out a breath he was unaware he was holding. So it wasn't something...human. He hoped not. Animals stayed away from humans, or that's what he read in a book once.

"Anyway, experiments were carried out here to create jutsu that were impressive and could easily be performed by even the most in-experienced of ninja. During the war, even children were sent to fight, some, even younger than you."

"Me? But I'm seven."

"Children down the age of five were sent. Therefore, the jutsu's created had to be do-able by anyone. These experiments were successful and were presented to the Tsuchikage for his use to benefit our village and strengthen our military. However..."

Deidara blinked, suddenly curious about this place. Everything that was said sounded pretty cool. The boy could guess why he was here now. To learn cool jutsu right?

"This laboratory was overrun by enemy ninja when our nation lost some land to the hidden Sand village. Eventually, it fell. Soon, we fought back and this piece of land was re-claimed. We got the laboratory back but it was in this state."

"...Oh."

"But enough of that," Jirou smirked as they approached the darker end of the hallway. The child sped up and tried to stick closer. Not wanting to lose the other in this place. Deidara glanced around wearily, curious but not curious at the same time.

"You want to impress Lord Tsuchikage don't you?"

"I-I do but, if this place was run-down, why would we be here? Isn't there some less...dark place where I can learn something?"

The older man paused, causing Deidara to bump into him due to the darkness. Muttering a small apology, the boy looked up and squinted through the pitch-blackness. There was a wall in front of them, with a paper tag on some kind clinging to it. Jirou made a hand sign that he couldn't identify in the shadows before placing his hand onto the seal.

_Is there something here?_

Soon enough, his question was answered as a sudden shaking of the ground and the sound of something grinding against rock was heard and felt. Bits of tiny rocks hit Deidara's face, causing him to wince and shield his face. After ten seconds or so, the shaking stopped and everything fell back to the silence.

"Stay there, I'll turn on the lights," Deidara heard Jirou say to him.

Obeying, the boy stood and listened as some footsteps sounded in front of him. His eyes had adjusted to the darkness but it was still too dark to see what was ahead of him. His heart-rate sped up as his mind began to wonder what he would do if he was suddenly left behind. Deidara didn't want to be left alone in here. The only safety he had was Jirou himself.

Suddenly, something flickered ahead and lights began to flash. A whole other hallway was revealed to him. Bright and stone-covered. It looked like just any other hallway in the Tsuchikage building to Deidara. The floor was tiled with some polygon he couldn't name while the walls were the usual grey. The only difference he could note was that the corridor looked significantly older and more worn than what he was used to.

Jirou was visible now, continuing down the corridor without him. Fear still clear in his mind, the boy hurried over to his side. This was beginning to get a little repetitive. Jirou kept leaving him behind like he was some annoyance that he didn't want to deal with. It frustrated Deidara, who still felt the need to cling to someone right now with the vibe he was getting from this place.

He sniffed the air, smelling something awful. Deidara had just noticed that the air here seemed a little thick with some kind of putrid stench. Similar to the smell of a rotting cheese or some kind of animal poop.

"Ew, what's that smell?" Deidara pinched his nose, his face turning a little pale.

"Probably some rotting animal carcass. Some fox or wolverine's last meal. Either that or it's poop."

"Poop?!" The boy exclaimed.

The older man ignored the blond. Deciding to keep his mouth shut, Deidara tried to keep his mind on other things. Like what kind of jutsu he would learn or whether or not he had enough money to buy some extra clay from that ceramics shop. Han told him that was the place he had bought it, picking it up while he was shopping for dish-ware.

"Here we are!"

Snapped from his thoughts, Deidara blinked and looked around. They had arrived to a large rectangular room with chairs lined along the left side. This place looked cleaner than anything in this building. Though, what surprised Deidara was how spotless the floors were. Like they had been shined just a few minutes ago.

Looking back up, he noticed that Jirou had started talking with another man. This one was chubbier than him and wore the Iwagakure uniform, so Deidara assumed things were fine.

This place was cool and creepy at the same time. He wouldn't have minded seeing some more if he weren't alone to do it. If Kurotsuchi or Akatsuchi were here, they'd definitely go exploring. Kurotsuchi would love a place like this! Akatsuchi? Well, it'd be fun to see him get scared but brag about being brave when while his knees shook.

"Deidara."

Jirou turned to him, "There's a room I want you go to. That room has a scroll in it that's required to perform a certain technique. We'll have to wait a while. This guy's gotta do something first," He glared at the other, looking for some support, "Right?"

The man's face looked fearful for a moment before he started to nod hastily, "Right! Right."

Deidara's eyes followed the other ninja who seemed to the hurry down another hall that connected the room. Looking back at the older man, he saw him sit at the chair. Deciding the follow, the boy hesitantly looked around before making his way over to a chair and sitting down.

The two sat in silence. Figuring that some conversation could make things more interesting, the six-year old glanced up at Jirou.

"So, what are we gonna do?"

"You're gonna perform a jutsu for us that'll change your body a little."

"Change my body?!" Deidara repeated in alarm.

"Not by much," The Iwa nin tried to relax him. Having too much doubt and suspicion would be bad, "This jutsu is really easy to perform. You should be able to do it. It'll make you capable of putting chakra into objects."

"But I can do that already," The boy replied in a puzzled tone, thinking back to when he did the same thing with the boulder and many of his clay birds.

"No, I mean, you don't have to be touching it to make it explode."

Jirou noticed the child's eyes widen. He was beginning to catch Deidara's interest, good. He'll just have to keep it going now.

"Basically, you have the power to transfer chakra into an object or something. You have explosive chakra so you'll be able to detonate it. Thing is, you can be as far as possible from it. After that, you'll be able to detonate it from afar."

"Like a paper bomb?!"

"Sure, like that."

"Cool! So, how do I do it?" Deidara jumped in his chair excitedly.

Jirou grinned and faced the child. This was pretty easy. After all, it was like this kid believed anyone. Couldn't blame him, many of the people he probably grew up with were trustworthy. How naive.., "Okay, here's what you're gonna do..."

* * *

_I was about to make the biggest mistake in my life, or the best choice if you looked at it from another view. In all honesty, in the end, I was grateful for my hands._

* * *

"That's it?" Asked the boy. His hands were still clasped in the a backwards ram seal he was told to end it off with. In total, he was supposed to do at least five seals. Deidara recognized the the seals, knowing them to be familiar for whatnot.

"Yup, and after that. You'll put your hands on the scroll and the rest will be taken care of," Jirou assured him, demonstrating with his hands.

Deidara nodded accordingly and followed. He wasn't exactly sure why they had to go to such measures for a single jutsu but, this was the Tsuchikage so he wasn't all that surprised. His master probably had an whole arsenal of jutsu like this, Deidara would just be learning one of the sort.

"It's a summoning jutsu. Know what that is?"

The child's eyes brightened in eagerness, "That's where you get animals, right?!"

"Exactly, though, not always animals." Jirou confirmed.

Deidara couldn't help but wonder what he'd be summoning. A dog? A bird? He liked birds. Better yet a dragon! He didn't even stop to consider whether or not dragons actually existed before he thought of how much he could show off. Imagining himself in battle with several opponents on the field. Deidara imagined himself tired and beaten, until he said some cool line and then summoned a dragon. Yeah, that would be cool. Really cool.

The older man noticed that the kid suddenly seemed to space out but decided to ignore it. He just needed to get this over with and see whether or not this kid would be able to survive it. The chances were slim though...very slim.

Jirou's mind wandered for bit before he remembered something, "Oh yeah, you need to cut your hands."

The child's head shot up and looked at him with alarm. "D-do what!?"

"It's a summoning jutsu. In order to get what you're summoning from there to here, you need to sacrifice some blood to transport it," Jirou seemed to shift in his seat and put started to rummage through a weapon's pouch attached to his flak jacket. Pulling out a kunai that Deidara recognized as Iwagakure's due to the square hole at the end of the handle.

The kunai gleamed in the ceiling light, causing Deidara to feel a twinge of fear. He had never intentionally hurt himself before. Much less cut himself.

Seeing the frightened look on the child's face, Jirou tried to smooth things out, "Just a small cut, you don't need to completely saw your hand off. It'll hurt just a bit."

The kunai was offered to Deidara who stared at it for a full five seconds in consideration. Was this really necessary? It was gonna hurt after all and Deidara didn't want it to hurt. What would it look like? Would have have to press hard? He wasn't scared of blood or anything but...

Jirou started to instruct the boy. "It'll be hard to cut yourself in that dark room so do it now and it won't hurt as much," _Not compared to what you'll experience soon. _The man thought.

Hesitantly, Deidara gulped and took the kunai. Holding up the kunai above his palm, he trembled slightly at what he was going to do.

"Right in the middle of your palm. It'll only hurt for a while, ignore the blood."

It was obvious to Deidara to that Jirou was trying to emulate that so-called _comforting_ voice that women often used on children like him. It was also obvious that he was bad at it since not the slightest bit of comfort came from his words.

The kunai drew closer but the boy stopped it a mere few centimetres from his skin. Hand still shaking.

"I don't know..m" Deidara mumbled.

Jirou blinked and glanced at the boy. "What?"

"I don't know! It's gonna hurt..," The kid spoke louder.

At this moment, Jirou felt like grabbing that kids kunai and stabbing his hands himself. He didn't have time for this! This kid came here for a reason! Did he forget?! Dammit, he had to stay calm, find a way to convince this brat to do it.

"Look, it'll hurt but this is necessary! Just a little blood! A little! I'm not asking for a lot. We'll bandage it up after you've done it, okay?"

"...Okay..," Deidara nodded in barely visible way, eyes still fixed on the palm of his hand. Even after he agreed though, he still didn't look like he was gonna do it. The child whined a little in his throat.

"How bad do you want to impress your master? Tell me."

The words caught Deidara's attention as he gazed up at Jirou. A slight bit of annoyance was laced in his voice but nothing the boy wasn't used to.

"You want Lord Tsuchikage to like you and your art right? How bad?" Jirou reworded his question sternly.

"Really bad."

"Really? How bad? Why do you want to be one?"

"Everyone tells me...that sculpting and art is a waste of time..."

"And?" Jirou urged on.

"I want to be a genin and be an artist. I also want master to be proud of me so he can make me a ninja. My art isn't stupid and I want people to know that."

"And what if you don't achieve that? Are you just gonna stop here because you're scared of a little pain?"

"Hey! I'm not-" Deidara snapped but paused, realizing that he was indeed, scared.

"In order to gain something, you need to experience pain first. This? This is nothing. You'll be feeling a lot more of it when you're a genin, a chunin, a jonin. If you can't do this, than you're no ninja at all, much less an artist as you keep telling me."

Deidara frowned and looked back at his palm. It would only hurt for a while. His art, it meant everything to him, since Han stopped talking to him and Onoki kept shortening his leisure time. His art was something more than a waste of time.

"So you gonna do it?"

The blonde didn't answer for a few moments before finally making a big nod. His expression showed a new found determination, completely different from the one he showed before.

At this, Jirou resisted a smirk. He had finally gotten through the kid, and he wouldn't have to talk cheesy anymore.

Slowly, Deidara held his breath and lowered the kunai stiffly, feeling the sharp end touch his skin. However, he didn't stop and started to dig it in until he felt a sharp pain in his hand. He winced and blinked but didn't pause or withdraw. Feuled by his anger, Deidara dragged the kunai a bit to the left and created a slit. The pain increased and he felt something warm and wet pool in his hand. Blood had begun to seep out but at a rate that Deidara's had not expected.

"Ah! It's bleeding!" He panicked.

"Than you can stop and do the other one."

"But I'm gonna get it all over the floor," Deidara pulled the now bloody kunai away and looked at the back of his hand, trying to prevent the blood from dripping.

"That's fine, I'll clean it up later."

"And the handles gonna be bloody."

"That's also fine. I'll clean it up."

Deidara switched hands and propped his other hand on his knee with the palm facing up. Carefully, he cut his hand but cleaner and faster than he did previously. After wards, he handed it to Jirou who grabbed it normally despite the fact the handle was now covered in splotches of his blood. Deidara winced as he controlled his hand. Cutting his hand meant cutting through a muscle or two. Now it felt like he had a cramp in it, but Deidara dare not complain anymore.

The boy stared at his hands while Jirou called for what Deidara assumed was his friend in the back ground. He had never done this before, surely it'd be worth it though. The pain felt old now and nothing compared to how it felt the moment the kunai had pierced his skin.

"Come on, the scroll's this way," The Iwagakure shinobi gestured towards the child.

The trio walked into the hall connecting to the room. Like the last room, Deidara noticed the floor was strangely clean, shiny even. At this point, he had gotten used to the stench of this place. In fact, it didn't even effect him anymore. It even felt...normal.

Soon, they were at a door with a seal clinging to the surface. Deidara could tell almost immediately it was a protective seal but something told him that it wasn't functioning at the moment. Like this, it was just a sticker on a wall.

The door was pushed open by the unnamed shinobi and Deidara was soon shoved inside. Caught by surprise, the boy stumbled into the darkness and looked back at the door with a puzzled expression.

Following him inside, Jirou walked ahead of Deidara.

"I'll be nearby."

As soon as he said it, the man had disappeared somewhere. It was took dark to see where he went and from what it seemed, the room was just an endless abyss of darkness. A familiar chill ran up Dediara's spine as he refused to make a sound and alert whatever was in there. Instinctively, he sealed his mouth shut and didn't do or say anything.

_Click_

Deidara glanced over his shoulder and noticed immediately that the door had closed on him. Panic began to rise in him as the old fear of being left alone in an unfamiliar place came back to him.

_No! No! I'm alone! I'm alone in here! Wait..._The boy paused and relaxed. _Jirou's in here, I'll be fine... _

Turning back to the pitch darkness, Deidara took a few hesitant steps forward. Instinct still sternly ordered him to turn back and find a light source but he refused them. Looking down, he realized he couldn't even see his body or clothes. It was too dark.

The only thing that Deidara could hear was the sound of his own footsteps as they echoed around the room. His light breathing assured him that he was still alive. Curiously, he wondered why he couldn't hear or see any evidence of Jirou being around. He was in here right? Surely he'd make at least a little sound.

Many steps in, the blonde was sure he had been walking for a while. His eyes had played tricks on him and showed him things in the pitch blackness that he didn't want to see but he still continued. Reminding himself that he wasn't the only one in this room. Jirou was here too. Jirou was rescue him if something went wrong.

_Not that anything will go wrong I hope. Where's the scroll? I can't find it if it's dar-_

A sudden light exploded into the darkness. One flickered into sight with the other one following in suite. The sight caused Deidara to jump slightly and whine a little. Staring straight ahead, a stand had become visible in the light. The two flames created a soft yellow and orange glow in the darkness that gave him comfort for a few seconds. However, unlike what he expected, his fear had not subsided.

_**Lub-dub**_

_I can hear my heart. _Deidara noticed.

_**Lub-dub**_

_It's so quiet in here._

A large scroll about half his size sat on the stand. The scroll was emerald green lined with golden yellow on the edges. Small intricate details were visible. Deidara could see artistic drawings patterned onto the outer layer. Clouds and mountains ranges were visible on the edges, gleaming in the light.

By now, the darkness was completely ignored as Deidara advanced towards the scroll in mild excitement. Visible eye wide with wonder and interest. The boy paused his step and felt another shiver down his back when he saw something etch its way onto the scroll's front.

Written in what appeared to be black ink of some sorts was a japanese kanji that Deidara knew _very_ well.

**'****石****' – Stone**

_**Lub-dub, lub-dub**_

_Whoa...cool._

Walking up the scroll, Deidara got busy and tried to pick up the scroll.

_**Lub-dub, lub-dub**_

The boy stumbled back, scroll cradled in his arms. It was heavy, that was for sure. The scroll felt as heavy as a small watermelon. Arching his back to try and support it, Deidara tried to find a place on the floor where it was light enough but not too close to the darkness ahead.

_**Lub-dub, lub-dub**_

It fell on the ground with a small 'thump'. Deidara glanced around to make sure this was a good place before plopping down on his bum cross-legged. Reaching for the scroll, a drop of something black and dark coloured from his hand reminded Deidara that he was still bleeding. Knowing what blood was like, better do it before it starts to dry up. Dried up blood never smelled good, nor looked any better.

Not wanting to make a mess, he rolled the scroll until he found the flap that opened it. Using his thumb and index finger, he tried not to get any blood on the pretty details on the outside as he slowly opened it.

_**Lub-dub, lub-dub**_

What would he summon? Deidara felt stupid for not asking before. Hopefully it was something cool, he didn't want to summon something lame like a fish or a super aggressive cat.

_**Lub-dub, lub-dub**_

The scroll was open, revealing it's contents. Surprisingly, most of it was empty except for a couple of circles written in some japanese characters. What caught the blonde's attention most was that dried blood was all over them. Stained into the paper, some of it was so dry and old that if Deidara tried to scrape it off, he's surely rip the scroll. The paper was thick and stiff in this area due to the blood but Deidara didn't take much notice into it.

Soon, his own blood would be stained onto this scroll. A sign that the he had been a user of it.

_**Lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub**_

_The first is the boar..._

Deidara moved his hands into position. Careful not to mess up or else he'd have to do the same thing over. He'd have to memorize this for later, if he wanted to summon again.

_Dog..._

_**Lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub**_

_Bird..._

_**Lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub**_

_Monkey..._

_**Lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub**_

_And a half tiger/ram seal. The seal of confrontation._

_**Lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub**_

Finishing off the seals, the blonde did what was told and placed his hands on the scroll, specifically inside the circles. Knowing what the jutsu was supposed to look like, the boy expected to see a puff of smoke and something appear inside it. Instead...

_**Lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub**_

_Nothing's happening, where's the animal? _Deidara furrowed his eyebrows and leaned away. His blood was printed onto the paper, so it wasn't like he hadn't sacrificed any of it. The child remembered specifically that he had been extra careful about doing it right. Even making sure to the replace the last hand seal with the backwards ram that he was told specifically to do.

Why wasn't it working?

_**Lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub**_

Oh no, he must have messed up somewhere...better do it again_._ Deidara sighed and lifted his arms to try again but paused.

It wasn't voluntarily, he didn't command his arms to stop all movement. They stopped on their own, and Deidara didn't know why. Disturbed, the child tried to move them but found that they didn't respond.

_**Lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub**_

The first thing he wanted to do was call for Jirou and ask him what was going on but found he couldn't speak. It was like he was paralyzed and his throat had refused to make any sound. Panic rose and Deidara's eyes grew wide. Genuine fear bubbling up from inside of him as he realized how helpless he was.

_I gotta move! What's happening?! I can't move! I can't do anything! _

His body began to shiver due to how much he was commanding it to move. It was almost as if it wanted to move, wanted to follow his command but something was restricting it from doing so. His heart rate had picked up. Adrenaline rushed through his veins are arteries, only increasing the panic in Deidara. This wasn't right! This wasn't what a summoning jutsu does! It wasn't supposed to be like this!? What was happening?

_**Lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub**_

The sound of something similar to cracking bones was heard, causing Deidara to freeze and listen. First, it was just sound, but now, he was sure there was something in his shoulders. Something foreign wriggled inside it, making Deidara's skin crawl. In suite, his other shoulder started to emit the same sound, cracking was heard before he felt the same foreign object wriggle under his skin.

The way it felt, like there were two worms digging into his flesh. Deidara wanted to make a sound, say anything, do anything, grab whatever it was and tear it from his insides, but he found he couldn't. He broke into a cold sweat as his panic was nearing its maximum.

_**Lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub**_

Soon, the two things have begun to burrow down his arms, tearing through flesh and bone. The pain was agonizing as he felt his flesh tear and rip apart to make room for whatever was burrowing into his body.

_**Lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub**_

_It tore into his palms, trying to tear out of his skin. It wasn't long before he felt them tear his skin open, revealing rows of human teeth and a long tongue protrude his palms. It made a gasp, though only able to make primitive sounds. His eyes widened in shock as blood splattered onto his face. He could taste it, his own blood, but why? It hadn't gotten into his mouth. He stared at his new body parts, the mouths had tongues covered in blood. The taste buds had already connected to his nervous system, he could taste what it tasted. It was warm and wet, tasted rusty, like iron._

_**Lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub**_

_Blood spilled from his hands, staining the open scroll. It took more than a few seconds for him to realize that something else had begun to tear at his chest. All attention was directed away from his hands as he started to feel his chest, ignoring the strange feeling of his hand mouths. There was something there, wriggling, like his arms. Knowing what was going to happen he tried to stop it, prevent it was tearing open his chest. Agonizing seconds passed as it closer and closer to the surface._

_**Lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub**_

_It was like someone wanted him to suffer for all of a sudden, he had regained control of his body. The worst part of this was no matter what he did, what he thought of, he was powerless to control whatever was tearing at his chest. It was horribly painful, but found that he still wasn't given the luxury of screaming his heart out. Left to suffer, crippling in pain in the darkness without any way to get anyone's attention. _

_**Lub-dub, lub-dub**_

_He had never felt so helpless._

_**Lub-dub, lub-dub**_

_Why? Why the pain hurt so much!? Why did it have to last so long!? Why did blood suddenly start spurting out of his chest?! Why was it so painful when the thing had torn open his skin!? Why was it so big?! Why did to have to tear its way out!? Why did he do this?! Why did he agree to this!? Why?_

_**Lub-dub**_

_"__**AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHGGGGGGGGG!"**_

_**Lub-dub**_

_His body had finally broken free. Deidara screamed his lungs out until his throat hurt and he was out of breath. Blood was everywhere, on his clothes, on his face, on his arms, on his legs. He was surrounded by blood. _

_**Lub-dub**_

_The screaming finally stopped and Deidara slumped to the ground into a pool of his own blood. His body was tired and everything ached. All of a sudden, nothing hurt anymore. The boy's mind had become numb to the pain. Why was he still conscious? How much did the forces want him to suffer? He didn't want to be alive right now. Watching in silence as his blood still poured out of his hand. _

_**Lub-dub**_

_He was so tired...Deidara felt his consciousness fade._

_**Lub...**_

_Why did the world look so dark?_


	12. Master Sasori Part 4

_**Master Sasori Part 4**_

_When I woke up, Jirou had tended to me and let me sleep in a room in the same building where I had performed the jutsu. He told me I had done well, and that he chose not to tell me of the pain so I wouldn't back off from the challenge. My body was numb, unused to the new appendages now permanently bore into my flesh. Apparently, an organism was summonsed forth and now resided within my body. It would feed off my chalkra bit by bit as a parasite until it fully mature and started to merge with my muscle and bone, becoming part of me. Two separate organisms, united with one body that could create the ultimate explosion._

_From then on, I possessed three extra things. Two mouths on my hands, and one large one on my chest. For a few days, I was left to do whatever I wanted, Onoki being told apparently that I had gone to a distant friend's house for a while at the edge of the village as to not question my disappearance. Jirou made me promise not to tell anyone about my hands, nor act as if I was acquainted at all with him. _

_I trained with Jirou outside the village after I recovered. He taught I need to know, and by then, I realized the height of which my art had grown. From stationary sculptures, they came to life in a burst of light and flames. Not only was it absolutely beautiful, but the pure destructive power had convince med that Onoki would love it. My art would not be ridiculed anymore. _

_I was powerful._

* * *

_Roughly 2 months later..._

_BOOM_

Time had passed since the day he got his hand mouths. Deidara wasn't completely aware about how much time had passed but he was sure it was a lot. Running through the forest outside of Iwagakure, the boy was currently practicing. His aim had gotten a lot better since he was forced to throw his clay models to get a safe distance. Even then, he had plenty of time to demonstrate his improvement during training with Onoki who didn't think much of Deidara's sudden need to wear gloves every session.

_BOOM_

Training in secret with Jirou had become easier since the first day. Though, the explosions were hard to control at first, he eventually got better and even got his hand mouths to listen to him sometimes. Deidara even learned that they had characters. The one his right hand was often active and needed clay to satisfy it before calming down. It also had a tendency to drool a lot and the only way to prevent it from blowing his cover was to have it chew on clay on a daily basis. The left hand mouth was always a bit slow. It chewed slower and wasn't as easily riled up as his right hand. It was his more behaved one, didn't bother him much and didn't drool every time even a bit of clay was within three feet of him. Between the two, lefty was Deidara's favourite one, quieter and easier to keep in control, though it took its sweet time mixing the chakra into clay.

_BOOM_

The mouth on is chest was the most obedient so far. It didn't open much, only yawned in the morning and didn't do anything else. It didn't freak out over clay and from what Deidara assumed, it seemed to sleep twenty-three out of the twenty-four hours of the day. It was disgusting at first, but Deidara learned to live with it and even talked to his new mouths when he was bored or concerned with something. They even seemed to respond sometimes, making primal sounds that which Deidara could decipher emotions. If anything, he felt more level-headed with these new additions to his body. You could even say he befriended them.

_BOOM_

"Hey!"

The boy skidded to a halt. Turning his head, he saw Jirou appear out of the brush with a less than happy look on his face.

"That almost blew me up!"

Deidara blinked and immediately bowed in apology, "Sorry! I didn't think you were so close."

"Just warn me next time," The shinobi said gruffly.

The child nodded. He felt something twitch in his right hand, causing him to lift it to see what was wrong. As usual, his right hand was freaking out over nothing. It always seemed to be active during the training sessions with Jirou. One time, it bit his finger after Deidara tried to disturb it by poking the back of the tongue. Back then, the kid had quite enough of his right hands bad behaviour around Jirou or the other chubbier ninja. He wanted to teach it a lesson by poking the back of the tongue whenever it misbehaved, however, it was clear now that would only get him his finger bitten off, which lefty wasn't too fond of.

"_Quit it_!" The child hissed, keeping his voice low.

"You know what?"

Deidara's head shot up, trying to appear as if he were paying attention. Meanwhile, he made a fist in his right hand, muffling it into submission.

"What?"

"I think it's time you showed your stuff."

"Huh?"

"Yeah, show off a little. You're already pretty good from what I can see, not that I can compare it to anything since you're the only one I know to have those things."

_Those things? _The blonde felt a bit offended to hear that. Though he knew the man meant the hand mouths, Deidara couldn't help but feel like it was a direct attack to himself. Things? These weren't _things_, they were his extra mouths, no different than the nose on his face or the legs on his body. Were these mouths so bad?

"Use it at the next meeting, they'll be impressed for sure! And you better not forget to credit us, we helped you after all," Jirou smirked and pointed a thumb to himself.

"We?"

"Yeah, me and the other guy."

"What meeting?" Deidara asked.

"Occasionally, the Explosion Corps has a meeting with the Tsuchikage. We discuss things and do training exercises. In three days, we'll have a training exercise with Lord Third. Likely, you'll be on the sidelines. Instead, I want you demonstrate to everyone what you can do. I'll handle the rest."

The child nodded, "Okay. So, when do I do it?"

"You'll know."

"What's that supposed to mean?" He said irritably, not completely getting the idea.

"You'll just know. I'll make it easy to understand. Anyway, I have to go. Relax for the next two days, I don't have any more time to babysit you."

Deidara's eye twitched, he found it quite hard to keep his mouth shut about that. First, he's a kid and now he's a baby? Out of the many things he did not know, there was one thing he was one-hundred percent sure about, and that was that people only got older, not younger.

"Get rested up. I've been prepping you for two months so save up your energy. You better not disappoint or else, got that?"

"Yes, sir."

"Oh, and one more thing," Jirou made a serious face, "Don't blow your cover. Got it?"

"Yes, sir."

* * *

_Oh hell did I blow my cover. _

_Ever since I got my hand mouths, my entire world had been surrounded around art and art only. My palm mouths were my friends, my chest mouth was a sleepy brother, and my clay was my career. _

_I fully remembered what Han said, and how it boosted me. So much that even giving me the wrong look felt like a personal attack. I went out more often and showed off my art, confident that one day, the ignorant people of the village would realize how great it was, and how an artist didn't starve. _

_And then, I killed._

* * *

"AGH! HELP! HELP!"

"_SHUT UP,_" Deidara roared, throwing a punch to silence the Kamizuru child. His heart beat savagely, mind clouded by a red mist, only instinct and bottled up anger drove his actions. There was only one thing that could satisfy him, he deserved it after all, "_REMEMBER? REMEMBER? WHEN YOU TOLD ME BEING AN ARTIST WAS LAME? WELL GUESS WHAT? I'LL USE IT! TASTE IT!_"

Fishing out some clay from his pocket, Deidara shoved the clay spider into Gokiburi's mouth, forcing it down his enemies throat, ignoring the sticky saliva pooling around his hand. Flesh stretched and ripped, a sickening 'crack' lending to satisfy the boy. For a second, Deidara narrowed his eyes, pausing to see if any movement could be sensed. He didn't want to kill him, not just yet. The body seemed to go limp, however springing to life only moments later in panic while both hands scratched at his throat, attempting to force the clay-spider out of his throat, choking loudly with gurgles and gasps, bits of vomit accumulating from the stomach.

"_SEE WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU INSULT MY _SCULPTURES!"

The clay spider melted slightly, choking the victim further. Pressing his hand to the surface, a maniacal grin crept onto Deidara's face, anticipation swelling as he made the hand seal.

* * *

_BOOM_

_The moment my vision cleared, I realized what I had done. I had killed –and that wasn't the only one I killed, blasted the head off of another child my age, when an adult came along, I blasted them to bits as well. I felt powerful with my new hand mouths and acted without thinking, deciding I would finally give someone a piece of my mind. He had insulted me you see, told me that I should stop bragging and that once he was a ninja, then he could have the last laugh._

_I got the last laugh. _

_Onoki hadn't been happy with the killing. The moment word reached, I was hounded by ANBU, ordered to capture me. I had pleaded for forgiveness, but the insults kept coming, the icy looks, the stares that once plagued at Han, and not me. _

_I feared for my life, I'd never dealt with something like this before. And master? He abandoned me, barely acknowledging the improvement that I had made with my art. He didn't understand, he couldn't understand. I didn't get why._

* * *

_THUNK, THUNK, THUNK_

_THUNK, THUNK_

The next thing Deidara knew, he was pinned to the ground. His head hurt from the daze but quickly shook it off. Looking up, he saw shuriken sticking out of the ground with a rope net attached to each of the five that surrounded him. Instinctively, Deidara began to wriggle around and jerk under the net, trying to get himself free.

"Gari! Help! What's going on!?" He cried out but the shinobi didn't respond.

The child stopped moving, seeing the look in that man's eye. That look...it was like Gari didn't even recognize him. That look...it was like...

Like he was looking at a demon, the same way the others looked at Han.

ANBU appeared on the scene. Deidara didn't recognize them as the same four he had met last night. These ones had different masks and different hair.

"It was a good thing we found it."

_It?...I'm an...it?!_

"Yeah, let's get it to Lord Tsuchikage."

On instinct, the boy began to whimper when they approached. His heart raced, his muscles tensed, and his eyes dilated. Deidara wanted to move, escape, retreat. This couldn't be happening. His right hand spit out some clay, a ball rolled across the ground towards the ANBU. He always had his right hand chewing on some to keep it calm when it was rowdy. And now, the habit would save him.

He pulled the seal.

_BOOM_

"What the hell was that!?" One of the ANBU exclaimed, jumping to a safe distance from the blast.

Meanwhile, Deidara ran. The world was but a blur now, his thought was to escape. Get away from those people. Nobody was helping him. Why wasn't anybody helping him!? The blonde was so sure that Gari would do something!But alas, he was also trouble.

Shuriken flew past him, slicing a bit of Deidara's hair. In shock and surprise, the boy jumped up onto the tops of the roofs. It was too hard to run down there, he needed some space. Civilians screamed and shrieked as the chase went on above them. Several eyes were cast upwards as Deidara jumped from house to house.

It was strange to him, wondering why on earth were they looking at him. Soon enough, his question was answered when the wind cast aside his bang, revealed an ANBU on his left. The ANBU lunged and tried to cut him with his sword but Deidara was too quick, immediately ducking into an alleyway and running through.

Deidara glanced over is shoulder to see three more ANBU on his tail. The child yelped in fear and turned back only to nearly run over a stray cat in the alleyway. Thinking quickly, he grabbed the cat and threw it behind him. Successfully getting the cat to attack and halt one of the ANBU.

The scene would've been funny, hilarious if he weren't being chased. Two more, two more were on his tail.

Why did this have to happen to him!

* * *

"Lord Tsuchikage!"

Said man watched as an ANBU appeared in front of him in a respectful kneel.

"What is it?"

"The target escaped us sir!"

"Again?"

"I'm afraid so, eight of our forces are currently pursuing it but the target proved to be more dangerous than we thought." The ANBU explained hastily.

"What do you mean?"

_BOOM_

The sound sent Onoki looking out the window. What he was met with almost gave him a heart attack.

The village was clouded with smoke. Explosions were seen all over, indicating where the target was currently going. Below, civilians ran for their lives as screams sounded everywhere. One blast caused many civilians to get thrown into the air. The chaos, it was familiar, but from a source that Onoki would never have guessed to ever cause such an event.

_Deidara..._

"Send out the entire division! This is no longer a mission to capture a thief! The scale has gone up and is threatening the entire village! Evacuate everyone away from the scene! This is an S-class offence and shall not be ignored!" The old fence-sitter ordered. "Capture Deidara alive!"

"Yes my lord!" The ANBU nodded and disappeared quickly.

Onoki grit his teeth and stared out the window. What was Deidara doing out there? Did he want to destroy this entire village!? His student, he knew his student too well. The boy would never do such a thing. Not on his life!

* * *

He was blinded in fear. Smoke was everywhere and the ANBU was still trying to capture him! Deidara's eyes went wide as another shuriken barely grazed his shoulder. Turning around, he had both hand mouths produce clay before he molded it in a split-second.

In a desperate attempt to get these people away, Deidara threw all his bombs. The ANBU tried to escape but were too late.

"_KATSU_!" He screamed.

_BOOM_

He didn't even turn to look back as the child continued to sprint. Escape was impossible and he knew that now. Everyone was out to get him...everyone wanted to hurt him!

* * *

Below the chaos, Kurotsuchi ran out of her house and stared up just in time to see the ANBU try and fail to capture their target. The moment one got close, they would be hit with a large explosion and be torn to pieces due to the blast.

Her eyes were wide but they got even wider when she caught a glimpse of who they were trying to capture.

"...Deidara...what are you doing?!" She asked aloud.

_BOOM_

The explosion was close this time. Kurotsuchi shielded herself from the blast with her arms but the shock wave was still at large. Her clothes flitted form the wind, forcing the girl to close her eyes. Even the ground shook as each explosion was detonated.

* * *

It wasn't long before Deidara had realized that the only escape left for him now was the forest. Running through the trees, the sky ahead let out a crackle of thunder, signalling a storm. The thunder was ignored however for the only things that Deidara could hear were his pursuers.

Behind him, many shinobi were on his tail. All of them seemed fierce and extremely strong. The closer they got, the faster the child ran. Jumping up, he spun in the air towards them.

"GO AWAY!" He shrieked while throwing another three bombs towards the ninja. Making the hand seal, he screamed the command.

"KATSU!"

_BOOM _

_BOOM_

_BOOM_

Without checking to see if what came of the shinobi, Deidara ran as fast as his legs could carry him. He didn't feel tired, he couldn't feel tired, for his fear overran all of his senses including his common sense. Rain poured down, causing his clothes to get wet. The sudden downpour caused the ground to become muddy. Deidara yelped as his foot got stuck in the mud, tripping him over.

"Agh!"

Glancing towards the ground, the child shook his head and realized that nobody was following him. His lungs ached and burned due to all the energy exerted for running. Deidara took a moment to get a grasp of where he was, no longer blinded by the fear that caused him to destroy his village.

_I-It's cold..._

Deidara got up slowly, stumbling a little due to how tired he was. It was only now that he realized how much his legs burned and how limp and heavy his arms seemed, like two sticks of cement attached to his shoulders. Deidara panted and wheezed. Continuing into the forest, he took his time, knowing that it would take a while for anyone from the to get out this far, much less locate him.

Finding a large tree, Deidara sat down at the base and pulled his knees close to his chest before burying his face in it. He felt so alone...

_I hate them..._

And he didn't like it.

_Master..._

* * *

Deidara woke up to the sound of swords being drawn. His heavy eyelids shot open to see himself surrounded by at least ten shinobi. All of them were identifiable as ANBU due to the masks that hid their faces. Immediately, the fear began to bubble up all over again. The child stood up and looked around at everyone who stood in the rain.

"You are under arrest for theft, murder, and endangering the lives of innocent people. You are no longer a child, but a criminal. On the order of lord Tsuchikage, we are to either capture you alive or kill you."

"I hate you," He murmured.

"Now come peacefully and we may treat you with leniency."

"I HATE YOU!" Deidara protested louder.

"So you will not come peacefully?"

"I'm not...A CRIMINAL!" In blind rage, the child threw all the bombs he had left towards every ANBU present, each bug-like sculpture fanned out.

"KATSU!"

_BOOM_

Birds in the vicinity of the blast immediately retreated. Escaping the firey blaze that erupted from the undergrowth of the damp forest. It was mid-day but there was no sun, replacing the warmth of the day star were dark clouds, occassionally raging with thunder. The rain poured hard onto the earth. Soothing the scar that had blown it's way into the forest. The tiny fires that started were quickly vanquished, leaving only the blackened brown scorched skin of the land visible for all things airborn to see.

You'd think that nothing had survived such an event.

The nearby bushes ruffled, out of it's damp greenery revealed a small blonde child wearing a green robe. His eyes were wide in fear, terror, gasping for breath as he quickly leaned against a tree for support. After a few moments spent resting, he limped forward towards the road ahead. Thinking that he could flag someone down from the road to help him. His lungs ached, he felt so tired...his mind was hazy from the previous events that happened that day.

He was tired...so tired...

_I hate them..._

The world faded to black.

_Master...I'm tired..._

* * *

_KLANG_

Deidara's eyes flashed open. The pain didn't come. He wasn't dead.

A flash of red hair completely woke the child up as he watched as the black and red Akatsuki cloak flared behind Sasori as he stood over him. Time seemed to stand still as the boy saw the look in the puppeteer's eyes. They were calm and dutiful, exactly like how a teacher should be when defending their student. The sunlight shown down on his saviour.

_Master?_

Jirou flew back, his body slammed into the tree ahead with a sickening cracking sound. The other chubbier shinobi's mouth was agape. Eyes turning from his partner to the Akatsuki member standing before him.

"Sasori!" Deidara gasped.

"You okay?"

_Am I okay? He asked that?_ "Uh...Uh-huh.," The boy nodded, eyes still in awe and shock to see him.

"Don't lie to me." Sasori flashed a glare towards Deidara, causing the boy to flinch and hide his hands under the sleeve of his cloak. Upon moving his broken arm, he winced, "You're arm looks pretty screwed up, you're not okay."

Deidara watched as the redhead took a few steps forward, his expression extremely calm and composed as if nothing was even happening. To his left was one of his puppets, clothed in a dark red cloak with a torn collar and sleeves.

"And it's because..," His finger moved, causing the puppet's head to droop. A flash of anger could be seen on his face, "...These guys hurt you. Am I correct?"

"...Why do you care?" Deidara whispered under his breath and turned his head away, making an annoyed face.

"Hmph," Sasori smirked. "People have their reasons for doing things, okay?"

Jirou coughed and stumbled back onto his feet.

Another puff of smoke cleared to reveal another puppet, clothed in the exact same way as it's twin. Both looked exactly the same, as if they were brothers. Standing in between them, Sasori lifted a hand, chakra strings clearly visible.

"Let's get started shall we?"


	13. Sasori no Danna

**Sasori no Danna**

Jirou stumbled to his feet. The man grit his teeth and stood before the Akatsuki member as his opponent.

_I was about to kill the brat, but then...that Akatsuki..._The Iwagakure shinobi kept an arm pressured against his stomach. Something was definitely ruptured in there, he could feel something poke against his flesh. Jirou narrowed his eyes and spit blood onto the ground. _That was a pretty good kick..._

His gaze went from Sasori to the two puppets by his side. The marionettes were no doubt well crafted, and probably had loads of weapons on them.

The puppet master jutsu, a jutsu that originated in the Land of Wind and even through the years of usage in war and with plenty of time to develop ways to counter it, was still highly notorious and feared as a lethal technique to this day. Jirou knew about this jutsu, used primarily in the puppet brigade of Sunagakure, he had fought a few of them in his younger adolescent years.

_But since then, the puppet brigade was disbanded and has been for at least five years...I didn't think there were still users of this technique._

"So Deidara..," Sasori started, still waiting for the shinobi to prepare in front of him. There was no need to be cautious, he could take this guy without moving, "These guys, judging from their head protectors, they're from Iwa, just like you."

Deidara shrinked back and nodded.

"Iwagakure has a large military, so I won't expect much of an answer but I wanted to ask: do you know these guys?"

Again, the child nodded.

"I see. Back at the inn, you said some ninja chased you out of the village. Are these the ones?"

This time, Deidara shook his head, signalling 'no'. It was unexpected, for the redhead thought that perhaps these were the same guys that were supposedly pursuing the kid earlier like he mentioned.

Sasori knew from experience and accounts from others that once a village becomes aware that one of their ninja had committed treason, they'd send forces to either capture or eliminate them. The story the puppeteer was seeing here wasn't all that extraordinary, but one thing stuck out.

The reason why forces and hunter-nin are sent is because often, the missing-nin will have valuable information from their village that could easily be extracted by sensory types and used against them. For the majority of cases, only a few of the best will be sent, but from what Sasori witnessed earlier, there were ten men back there from Deidara's village and twelve including these guys. An abnormally large force, especially for one small brat. The time in between the betrayal and when the forces arrived was unusually short, for it was customary for the village's council to talk it over first. It takes nearly a month before any serious measures are taken, especially to this extent. There were only a few reasons that a country would go to such an extent and that...

_Was if something highly dangerous and valuable was let loose..._

"Akatsuki."

Sasori looked back at his opponent, giving him the usual bored look he wore everyday.

"That kid back there, surely he's nothing but trouble for you, so we'll take him off your hands," Jirou saw a doubtful look on the puppeteer's face, he didn't seem convinced, "Of course, we'll give you something in exchange."

His attention was roused yet again, interested to hear what the man had in exchange. The puppeteer wasn't always one to turn down a free offer, probably something Kakuzu rubbed off on him.

Deidara blinked and quickly turned to fix his eyes on the redhead. That look...Sasori wasn't going to...abandon him? Whatever Jirou had to offer, the child hoped it wasn't anything the former sand-ninja was interested in. He didn't like the puppeteer all that much, but he'd choose him over those two any day.

Jirou made a weak grin as a bead of sweat rolled down the side of his face, "Hand over that brat to us and we won't speak a word of your location or your previous ones either. We'll deny we've ever encountered you. How does that so-"

_THUNK_

_THUNK_

The Iwa shinobi was interrupted and driven back by senbon being implanted into the ground beneath his feet. Landing on a tree, Jirou stood on the trunk and growled at the Akatsuki. Immediately with the movement of Sasori's fingers, the puppets were driven in to the base of the tree, both looking up at the ninja with dead eyes. The twin puppets made a clacking sound as their mouths fell open, at the ready to send out more projectiles.

"Don't try to make me laugh 'cause I don't do it often. Won't speak a word huh? If I believed in things like that I'd have been killed a long time ago. You really expect me to believe that you wouldn't reveal my location? You make worse lies that Deidara."

Sasori flicked his wrists, causing the puppets to shoot into the air towards Jirou. Instinctively, the man retreated into the trees, disappearing into the underbrush.

_Going were I can't see?_ The puppet master frowned. This is why he hated fighting in spaces like this. One of the weaknesses to being a puppet user was that one would only be able to fight if he could see his puppets. In a thick leafy place like this? It was no wonder the puppet brigade were unable to face Konoha's forces in the forest, ultimately becoming disbanded due to such pathetic weaknesses.

Glancing over to the crippled blonde behind him, Sasori knew he had to make a split decision. Either leave the kid here and prevent his location from being revealed or stay here and risk it. The third option? Not exactly the most efficient one but it would work hopefully, so far it seemed like the best thing.

Well, time to bite the bullet. Whatever pride he had would go down the drain after this, but it would be the only thing that would let him keep an eye on Deidara and make sure that guy and his buddy would be eliminated.

"Brat," Sasori called his attention. Crouching down, he faced his back towards the kid, earning a puzzled expression from the blond, "Get on my back."

Deidara hesitated. He was injured and tired, surely he'd just slow Sasori down if he got on his back. No point in doing that, "I'll stay here."

"No. There might be more of your village's forces in this area and if they find you like this alone, you'll be in trouble! Do you understand me?"

* * *

_"-When I'm not around. Unless I permit you to, you are forbidden from using it. This is for you're own safety. If you break this rule than I promise you the consequences will be **very **dire! Did I make this clear?"_

* * *

"Kid! I don't have time for this! Get on my back! It's for your own safety!" Sasori ordered sternly. By the second, that guy was getting further and further away, the small window he had to keep his location hidden was growing smaller by the second and this brat wasn't helping by just sitting there. He hated waiting.

Feeling Deidara's weight on his back, the puppeteer got up and supported the child with one hand. From here on, he'd be controlling both of his puppets with one hand. Not that he was incapable of it but the thought was annoying. Controlling anything with a single hand would always prove to be tough, even for a master puppeteer like himself. Generally more effort than what he usually exerted, which wasn't usually a lot. It had been a long time since he had to do this.

Small arms wrapped around his neck loosely, signalling to Sasori that the child was ready. Soon, the redhead was in pursuit.

Deidara kept his head low, trying to get under the branches so he didn't get slammed in face by one. The redhead was moving fast and the kid didn't want get blown off. Glancing down, he felt something box-like against his chest. It was solid and didn't feel like any part of the body.

"Sasori."

"Hm?"

"What's on your back?"

_I thought he'd feel it..._ "It's just a scroll holder. That's where I put my puppets."

The child furrowed his eyebrows, "Under your clothes?" He asked skeptically.

Deidara pouted when he didn't receive an answer. Surely when they back, he'd definitely ask. Resting his head on his own shoulder, the child looked ahead of themselves. From here on Sasori would handle things, and the thought gave the boy some comfort. While he was gazing around, the blonde couldn't help but notice something behind the high collar of the cloak. There was some kind of line around the redhead's neck. A single line that seemed to separate two halves.

"What's that line-"

"Be quiet or else they'll hear us," Sasori snapped, silencing the blonde with a sharp glare.

The glare was not lost in Deidara, for immediately after seeing it he shut his mouth.

Luckily, his hand mouths were being obedient, neither were being naughty at least. Of course, his left mouth seemed to be unconscious so it wouldn't be active at all, and it worried Deidara. His right mouth was silent ever since the left one was silenced. If anything, it lessened the chances of Sasori finding out, since he already seemed suspicious.

Soon enough, Jirou came into sight in the trees above, the other guy tailing right behind him. Deidara noticed the puppeteer's hold on him tighten before they sprinted even faster, probably so he wouldn't fall off.

The twin puppets came into view, their gaping mouths wide open as they caught up with the two. Sasori's eyes were trained on the one behind Jirou, having his puppets focus on the slower one. Though Jirou seemed to lag slightly due to the kick he received, he was still going pretty fast.

Clacking sounds alerted the chubby one that they were close up but he was too late to react before blades were drawn and the Iwagakure nin was cut down. Deidara forced himself to turn away and squeeze his eyes shut, not wanting to see one who he used to see as his comrade get cut in half. The sound of two large objects hitting the ground caused Deidara's heart to beat faster and his fear to grow. He didn't want to see the blood, that pathetic blown up mutt was enough but a human? Well, he really was still a child.

Closing in on Jirou, Sasori threw his hand to get one puppet closer up. The puppet sliced the air with it's large hidden blade, missing the ninja by a few inches. Retaliating, the shinobi turned around and pressed his hand to the puppet's head.

_BOOM_

Sasori's eyes widened, shocked to find his puppet in pieces. Finding no use in it anymore, he pulled off the chakra strings, letting the burning wood fall to the ground.

"Deidara! An explanation maybe?!"

"Jirou's part of the Explosion Corps back at home, so he can blow things up when he touches them with his hands!"

"And why is that?"

"He has explosion release! That makes things explode on contact!"

_Dammit, that's gonna be a problem,_ "Are there any weakness to it?!"

The child hesitated, taking a few stressed moments to think but continued by shaking his head with a worried expression, "I don't know. I just know how to do it, not how to stop it!"

_Detonates on contact? If that's the case, this puppet won't be of any help. It's only got melee weapons on it, and it doesn't have a lot of senbon projectiles_. Sasori pulled back his puppet, making it follow them at the same speed. Making the confrontational hand seal with the strings still attached, the puppet was quickly surrounded in a white cloud and disappeared.

A scroll fell down Sasori's sleeve only to be caught. In one swift movement, the scroll was rolled open in front of them, revealing many seals with different Kanji. Deidara's wide eyes scanned the scroll, intrigued. Attaching the chakra strings to two the circle seals, Sasori landed on a branch and paused while pulling out two puppets from the paper.

Another two puppets clacked loudly once they were summoned, possessing the same dead eyes as the puppet twins that previously were used. One puppet had long white hair tha draped over its face and the other had brown chonmage haircut.

_These two will do nicely_. Sasori made a confident smirk and continued in pursuit.

"There's a really tall cliff nearby! I saw it!" Deidara notified him.

"Where?"

"It's ahead! I don't think Jirou knows that!" The boy pointed ahead with his good arm.

"Good, I'll trap him."

Just like the blonde predicted, a huge cliff-face came into sight. Deidara squinted and tried to lean forward, nearly knocking the puppeteer off balance, causing him to stumble in his step.

"Hurry! He's running up the rock!"

"QUIT LEANING!"

"Oh, sorry," The child moved back, wincing slightly as his broken arm was moved.

Sasori gave a frustrated groan and continued to sprint. Making it over to the rock face, the redhead paused and used a finger to attach a chakra string to Jirou's back, hurling him towards the ground.

With a loud thud, Jirou was slammed into the rock below, his body rag-dolled for a few seconds before finally resting on the floor. Sasori frowned, this guy was still alive, amazingly. It was no joke that the ninja of Iwagakure were tough and sturdy, he'd definitely take note on that for later reference.

Finding a soft patch of grass, the puppeteer crouched down and let Deidara sit on the floor and lean on a tree, carefully setting his own down beside his body.

"Stay here and don't move," He ordered.

The weight was gone and the Akatsuki member was free to move with swiftness again. Able to use both hands, he attached the white haired puppet to his other hand and had them approached Jirou's body.

_BOOM_

The puppets retreated to a safe distance, clacking loudly and at the ready. The ground was broken with a fissures and cracks, dust and debris flying around the body.

_He blew up the ground beneath him to get my puppets away..._

Without taking a chance to see what the man would do, Sasori immediately had the white haired puppet raise its hands, small holes visible at the palms. The puppet launched senbon at the target, aiming for vitals and the head.

_Thunk, thunk_

_Thunk, thunk, thunk_

I got former Suna ninja thought satisfyingly.

_POOF_

"What?!" Sasori's eyes widened considerably at the sight of a log with several senbon stuck in the wood.

_A substitution!_ His head whipped around, looking for the real Jirou.

"HE'S BELOW YOU!" Deidata warned.

Sasori looked down too late as an arm erupted from the ground, ready to grab his leg. The Iwagakure's shinobi's head popped out, a wild smirk on his face to see the mildly shocked look on the Akatsuki's face.

"A puppet master always leaves himself open to close-range attack!"

Acting quickly, the redhead retreated his leg and jumped out of the way. Landing on a nearby branch for safety. He couldn't risk having one of his legs to be destroyed, or else controlling his puppets would be a lot harder of a job.

The puppet master watched with a hard glare as Jirou stood on the ground, glaring back. _He blew up the ground around himself to make it easier to burrow through with the hidden mole, replacing himself with a substitution with an added transformation for it to look like his body. After that, he caught me off guard by attacking from below when I thought he was dead...jonin level stuff._

_I can't play around anymore._

"That was pretty good. You almost got me there, but it wouldn't have mattered anyway." Sasori complimented mockingly.

"Damn Akatsuki!" Jirou snarled.

_He can't get me up here with that jutsu._ His gaze moved over to the child sitting a few meters away. _But it leaves Deidara defenceless, guess I'll have to take that risk._ For added caution, the puppeteer commanded the white haired puppet closer to the boy, acting as some sort of protection.

Pulling out the scroll again, another puppet was summoned to take the white haired one's place in battle, joining the other on the field. The two began to move clockwise around Jirou, increasing their speed slowly. The puppet's mouth dropped and began to shoot senbon at the target. Jirou dodged and moved back, glancing back to make sure he wasn't getting too close to the other puppet. Continuing to dodge, the white haired puppet was quickly forgotten.

From behind, something wrapped around Jirou's body. Automatically, the Iwagakure shinobi emitted explosive chakra out of his un-sleeved arm, hoping to blow up the binds before they could get a hold of him, but it didn't.

"Gah! What is this!?" Jirou looked down, shocked to see blue chakra strings around his body. His eyes followed the chakra strings, leading to the white haired puppet by Deidara. The blue threads came out of the fingers, where it couldn't get snagged by any clothing.

"Looks like you can't blow up chakra." Sasori smiled and jumped down, no longer weary of any ground attacks. Sauntering over, he pulled over the other puppet to float beside him as he stood before the ninja, "Figures, you can't cut it either."

Deidara's eyes dilated as a short blade was drawn from the puppet's hand, making a small gasp. He was going to kill him!

With the flick of the wrist, the blade came diving in for the neck, aiming to kill with a single hit. Once Jirou was dead, everything could go back to the way it was, and maybe, Sasori could explain his case to Leader.

_What should I say to him?_

"STOP!"

The blade paused.

Sasori's eyes turned to look at the child sitting by the tree. Showing clear frustration in his eyes at the fact that Deidara had demanded he stop.

"Just wait a second..."

"What? You gonna defend this guy? After he tried to kill you?" The puppeteer gave the boy a stern look. He wasn't gonna raise a softy, if this kid couldn't handle it...than Pein would never accept him.

"That's not it...I just wanna ask him something."

Deidara slowly got up, trying his best not to let his broken arm swing too much from his shoulder. Once on his feet, the blonde flinched to feel the cut on his leg again, reminding himself of the wound. Carefully and slowly, he limped over to the older male, a determined look on his face

Jirou gave a lopsided grin, "And what would that be? My favorite colour?"

"No, I want to ask you, why did you...make me steal it?"

_Steal it? He stole something?_ The puppet master questioned mentally._ I see, that explains the large force. So there really was something valuable on him._

"Steal what?"

"Don't act like you don't know!" Deidara exclaimed, "That jutsu, you said I could...I could impress Onoki..."

"And after that, Lord Tsuchikage got so mad at you that he sent a bunch of ANBU to take you down," Jirou continued sarcastically, amused by the horrified expression on the blonde's face, "But no, they couldn't catch you, because instead, you found it a lot more fun to blow up the whole village! Like the little thing I made you to be."

"THAT WASN'T FUN! I WAS SCARED!" The child shrieked.

"Scared? No, no, you looked like you kind of enjoyed that didn't you? Killing and blowing up all the people who never noticed you, who didn't give a rat's ass about your well-being and art as long as you lived by their expectations."

"I didn't..," Tears welled up in the boy's eyes, his voice breaking.

"You didn't? What didn't you do? You did everything! Stole! Betrayed! Killed! Cause havoc! Heck, I'd love to be you right now! You wanna know my plan? Well I'll tell you."

Jirou took a long breath to prepare. "I wanted to destroy the leaf village once and for all. During the Third Shinobi World war three years ago, I loved to fight. I completely agreed with the council on taking down that damned village. We were about to do it too, we were so close, but then your _Master_ just had to come along."

The man's voice grew more sinister as he continued, "He signed that stupid treaty and made everything boring so I decided to do something about it. Me and the other guy looked through the libraries and found a hidden jutsu that served us quite well in the past. I figured that the only reason we didn't attack was because our Kage was soft so I decided I wanted to make a weapon to make destruction possible."

"Destruction...possible?" Deidara repeated. His brain took in the information but it took a while for it to process. Once it did, his face grew hardened.

"We brought countless people to perform it but all of them died from the pain and blood loss. When he found you, we were sure you'd die but I guess you're just one tough cookie. It wasn't too extraordinary though, you were trained and brought up by that old man so I wasn't too surprised when you survived. What I wanted to do was make a proposition. You were to be that supposed 'weapon' to take down the village. You see, you're abilities are quite unique. If you wanted to, you could blow up a whole village with a single bomb. No hard work, all we'd need to do after the Kage was convinced was while the village was still recovering, finish them off with a giant bomb."

Jirou cackled and smirked, looking towards the sky, a dreamy look on his face. "But that didn't work out too well did it? Not after you killed that Kamizuru clan kid. So instead, I came on this mission to kill or capture you so that I could gain praise from the village and even get promoted. It small but anything could be salvaged from a failed project. From you, I wanted to get the money to start all over again, and the new rank would help me out too."

The Iwagakure shinobi smirked again and laughed, "Expecting more? That was my plan, now what are you gonna do?"

Sasori turned to look at the child, "Deidara, he's said everything, you gonna allow me to kill him?"

Deidara bit his lip. There was so much more he wanted to know, but the puppeteer was growing impatient and the boy didn't want to make him angry. Maybe just one more...

"I have one more question..."

* * *

(Naruto Shippuden OST 2 Track 25 "The Rain Stopped")

The wind blew the trees, causing leaves to fly everywhere due to the autumn season. Birds chirped in the background, chasing each other in the sky. The breeze felt comforting as Deidara rested his head on the redhead's shoulder, eyes downcast. Due to his cut leg and broken arm, he was in no condition to walk, so instead, Sasori carried him.

The world seemed so cruel.

* * *

_"Hehe, you wanted to know why I wanted to destroy Konoha? Well, I guess I'll tell you. During the Third War, I had quite a few friends. By the time the war ended, I was alone. All of them were killed on a suicide mission by leaf shinobi, each and every one of them. I got angry and wanted to destroy all of them, but I had to retreat. When I got back, I was promoted to Jonin since I survived. That's why, I wanted to destroy that damn village." _

_Jirou's mouth curled up into a solemn smile. "Ninja experience pain. In order to gain something, you need to experience pain first. This? This is nothing. You'll be feeling a lot more of it when you're a genin, a chunin, a jounin. If you can't do this, then you can't achieve anything. Not an artist either."_

* * *

"I'm sleepy..," He felt his eyelids droop. The blonde was rather tired from all the action of today, and the blood loss made him woozy.

"Then go to sleep," Sasori simply replied.

Deidara nuzzled closer to the puppet master's head, surprising the redhead a little. Listening to the rustle in the trees and the footsteps below him, it was all comforting.

The redhead glanced back at the child. As it seemed, the little terror had drifted off to sleep. Good thing, he'd be quieter now and maybe not bother him for the rest of the day.

At the corner of his eye, he saw something black and shadowy near the trees. Pausing, he took a moment to look over, eyes narrowing suspiciously at the ominous figure in the trees. Black eyes flashed red against the black silhouette in a sort of threatening manner, but Sasori knew better than to be the first one to move. His grip on Deidara tightened to see the short figure standing in the trees, however still careful not to wake the child up.

_That guy, he's still here._

Though Sasori knew full well that the unknown person was sent to assist, trusting anyone so easily never went without punishment. It was always that way in the Akatsuki, hence as to why the puppeteer rarely gave his subordinate free will when serving under him.

Soon enough, the figure had gone, turned away and disappeared. Sasori relaxed a little but still couldn't help but think that Leader took advantage of this situation. He just hoped that Deidara didn't disappoint. Now, the organization knew, and Sasori wouldn't be able to avoid it.

* * *

_The ground was wet and muddy. The rain poured down on his head, making himself shiver even more. He felt so tired. _

_"Hey."_

_Something nudged him._

_"You alive?"_

_Opening his eyes, the child saw a red-haired man who looked to be in his teens crouch down to look at him. The first thing the child thought was about the cloak he was wearing. It was covered in clouds...red clouds. _

_"Oh, good, you're awake. My name's Sasori, I'm going to help you."_

_"...Sa...Sasori...scorpion," The blonde murmured, trying to copy the elder's voice._

_"At least you can talk."_

_His eyes closed as he felt something lift him up off the ground. Oh well, at least someone was helping him. It felt nice...to have someone carry him. All his life, he lived on his own two feet. People would pull him along, tell him where to go and what he should look out for._

_It felt nice...to have someone care for you._

_Something only someone who really cared could you huh? Was this it?_

* * *

The village came into view. Sasori felt relieved, he just hoped nobody touched his stuff. He had left quite a few of his art works abandoned at the blacksmith's and it would calm him down to have something to work on.

Glancing back, he looked at Deidara. His face was peaceful.

_Hmph, if he was awake, he'd probably yell in my ear about going to the docks...Sasori smiled. I like him this way better._

Making his way slowly down the stairs, the puppeteer paused on a step when he felt the little body jerk a little.

"Sa...Sasori...Danna..," The kid mumbled in his sleep.

_Danna? That's a new one..._The Akatsuki member thought the name over, repeating it a few times in his head. Dannahuh? Doesn't sound too bad...He'd accept it. It sounded fresher than that over-used _Master_ he kept hearing. Smiling, he continued down the steps, careful not to wake the child up.

"Let's get you fixed."


	14. The Question of Evil

**The Question of Evil**

Deidara stood at the docks, arm held over his chest in a cast and sling. Luckily, the cut on the back of leg hadn't been deep and was only painful since it sliced into a tendon. With the help that healing jutsu that Sasori was able to perform, the child was completely healed there, and was able to jump and run as he was always able to. His arm was a more serious case; a spiral fracture which required more medical attention was a quick patch-up but needed far more time to heal. Normally, it would take up a to a year, but according to Sasori, as long he used the healing jutsu on it every now and then, the time would be reduced to as short as a month.

The sea looked even more massive here than it did on the cliffs, completely covering the horizon as far as his eyes could see. Blue water sparkled and shimmered in the mid-day sun, Deidara watching in awe as the wooden boats lifted their sails, filling with air in the higher atmosphere breeze. Dead fish littered the edges of the wooden docks, sea gulls squawking as they picked at the fish.

Sasori was nearby, talking things over with one of the fishermen who had just got off his vessel with a net full of fish and seaweed.

The air held a salty scent, Deidara immediately preferring this to the thick and heavy oxygen in the ironworks district. Here, it seemed much fresher, every breath yielding enough energy to keep his standing for another few minutes. Accompanied by the creaking of the boats as well as the water splashing up against the pillar supports down below, it created a ambience of which Deidara had never experienced on his short seven-year life.

_SPLOOSH_

Deidara snapped his head towards the ocean, eyes wide as he spied out a shiny grey lump in the water. The lump submerged itself, making rapids in the surrounding water until a nose popped, a creature with a familiar looking head-shape leaped out of the water, breaching as it wiggled it's fins and tail before playfully diving back into the depths.

* * *

_Han's eyes were casted towards the ground, almost solemn, "It's an animal that lives in the ocean, a whale though much smaller._

* * *

_Was that...a dolphin?_ Deidara pondered it over. It surely wasn't as large as any whale he knew of in books, too small. Its wedge-shaped head resembled greatly the shape that Han had made with the clay, a tapered bottle-nosed snout.

"Did you hear?"

"Hear what?"

Deidara turned his head to eavesdrop of the conversation, a man and a woman who appeared to be siblings stood nearby. The wait for Sasori to finish up was beginning to bore him.

"A traveler who just left with a group came running back alone. He claimed that his friends all got eaten by a giant snake. He escaped while it was busy with the others."

"What?" The woman gasped, "Surely he's crazy."

"I don't think so. He had a pretty good description of the snake. It's was big and blue, head as large as a dog! It ate his friend's whole!"

"Really? Here? Near the village?"

"Yeah."

_Giant snake?_ The child furrowed his eyebrows. He barely noticed as a shadow loomed over him.

"Okay, I'm done here," Sasori said.

The child seemed to stare at the ocean for a while, eyes scarcely blinking as if to wait for the creature to breach the water again. For now, the ocean seemed calm, not a single wave or rapid breaking the surface. Turning attentions to the redhead, the blond was quick to ask.

"Sasori no danna, did you hear about a big snake?"

"A snake?" The puppeteer stiffened at the word, eyes narrowing.

"Yeah, I heard it ate people near the village, or, that's what those people said."

Deidara was left in silence for a second, momentarily dreading the idea he had asked something wrong. Finally, the Akatsuki member seemed to make an exasperated groan, gritting his teeth in a scowl. A cold came over his features.

"What's this about a snake?"

* * *

_(Naruto Shippuden OST 2 Track 24 – Genshi[Hallucination])_

Deidara followed Sasori away from the village, stepping off the stairs to advance towards the forest ahead of which they came. After explaining and doing some asking around, the child had witnessed the puppeteer become increasingly irritable, brushing off remarks and becoming rather feisty with his words. Right now if anything, the redhead more like an old man characteristic of his puppet Hiruko than a boy that appeared at least around fifteen.

Entering the forest, the child gazed over the trees to his left, admiring the bones in the distance which he had been told were parts of the Mountain's graveyard just north of this place. By now, the child had known better than to wander off, and trust people he didn't know.

"Hsss..."

The sound caught Deidara's attention, tilting his stare up the redhead for guidance. Seeing no reaction, the child settled for closing the distance between them both, eyes wearily scanning the tree trunks for any sign of movement.

"Hsss..."

"Danna..," Deidara mumbled nervously, a shiver running down his spine.

Sasori felt a small hand cling to his sleeve, yanking lightly. Jerking his arm, the boy let go, settling his eyes on the bushes ahead. They were in no danger, not at the moment. An annoyance plagued at him at the moment, resisting the urge to sulk in front of the child.

"Hsss..."

"Danna, something's here!"

"I know," The puppeteer put the reply forth gently, quickly calming the boy who quit shivering immediately.

Deidara stared up at the other, the very calmness of the elder served to strengthen himself as well, a comfort coming over his mind. The fear had been vanquished; shoulders no longer tense as the blond faced forward with a new found courage. As long as Sasori was here, no harm would come. For now, the child would stand his ground, no matter what kind of danger laid ahead. He was sure of it.

The bushes rustled, a low hiss emitting once again from the under growth. The sound of rock and plant stems being misplaced creating a rumbling noise, some of the tree tops shaking against the weight of the gigantic animal. Deidara's confidence faltered, a large shiny slithering shape making its way towards them in the shadows.

Sasori continued to appear fearless, eyes lidded over with boredom, hands perfectly stilled at his sides.

Soon enough, a large scaly blue snout poked out from the brush to reveal a large reptilian head, green slitted eyes appeared unblinking to each side of the skull. A tongue the side of a man's arm flickered from its mouth, currently clamped closed save for a small gap at just below the nose receptors. The serpent held its head stationary, body slithering out from the bushes to push past it in a giant S-shape. Lifting itself, the snake towered over both, seemingly observing for a few moments.

"So, I finally found you," The blue snake ended the statement with a hiss, the very words causing Deidara to yelp in surprise, mouth agape in awe.

"It talks!" Deidara exclaimed.

Taking notice of the little tag-along, the snake's slit-like pupils stared squarely at the child, a chilling air about him. Hissing in interest, the serpent faced the little human.

"What's this? A snack?"

"He's just a subordinate of mine, ignore him," Sasori's voice held an authority. _That is, if Leader allows it to happen._

"Well, on to business. Lord Orochimaru sent a message."

"Orochi...maru?" Deidara repeated, watching as the snake opened its jaws. Two fangs, protruded from the top jaw, sticky saliva glistening in the sun-light. It's throat pulsed, an object –no, a scroll regurgitated from its throat. The child felt his right palm mouth stick its tongue out in disgust.

"He's my partner in the Akatsuki, " Sasori explained briefly as he took the thin scroll from the snakes mouth. Rolling the scroll, he found the flap of paper and pulled it open, a letter was written ink.

A growl emitted from the redhead, glaring down at the letter. Eyes skimming over the characters until he had finished with a disapproved huff, tossing the scroll back into the snake's mouth.

"So Leader is ordering us back huh?" Sasori inwardly muttered.

The snake clamped its mouth shut, giving the two another glance before settling his eyes on the child. Deidara pushed back the fear, gulping before mustering up the courage to step forward and man-up.

"I am Aoda, nice to meet you," Aoda slowly nodded, a thin transparent membrane coming over its eyes for a split-second.

"Oh, I'm Deidara."

"Hehe...you humans are so tiny when you're young," Aoda mused, turning back to Sasori who seemed to have finally give in and started to sulk.

Sasori blinked, having realized that attentions were focused back on him. Giving a cough, the puppet master decided to start a small lesson, "Aoda right here is an animal summon of my partner. Though he seems rather gigantic, he's actually still a baby snake. For now, he serves as a messenger between me and his master. Adult snakes of his kind are much larger and used for ninja combat, many times the size of Aoda, hundreds of times his size."

"It's true," The serpent hissed in a friendly manner.

Deidara made an astonished expression, attempting to imagine how large an adults snake would be. Large as a house? No, large as an apartment? Or a village? Or a mountain? Larger than even a mountain? The child pictured a snake resembling Aoda, coiled up in the middle of a battlefield, trees and rocks nearby crushed under its sheer mass that even the dust began to make clouds, an anonymous shinobi standing atop its head. Whoa...

"Anyway," The redhead eyed the animal, "Has Orochimaru been doing anything in particular lately? Anything I should know of?"

"What?" Aoda was taken aback, hissing loudly as he reared his head, "You think I would disclose information on my Lord? You may be his partner but I simply cannot comply!"

"I see...thank you for the message, you're dismissed."

Receiving a nod, Aoda hissed in resentment before a cloud of white smoke engulfed him, making a 'poof' sound as he went. A wind blew at the pair's clothes, a result of the dismissal.

Deidara glanced at Sasori, "What happened?"

"When animal summons are transported, they have to willingly agree to the caster's request. Once summoned, the animal has the free will to return to their place of origin. Usually after the deed is done or they have died."

"So summons are really used in combat? That's pretty cool," The child said.

The redhead 'tched' at the idea, beckoning Deidara to follow as both turned their heel back to the village. Sasori appeared to ponder the notion before making a comment, "Animal summons can still be annoying though, since they can still go against your orders. There's no guarantee they'll listen to you," His smiled, "Puppets are far better in that aspect. They completely submit and are unable to act without the one controlling them. That is why I prefer work with puppets."

_Sasori no danna..._The blond thought over his words for a while, deciding to ignore them as he continued to imagine himself in battle, summoning the most beautiful and powerful beast just as he was surrounded by enemy ninja. For some reason, the child didn't care whether dragons weren't real or not, spacing out with a blithe look as he daydreamed.

* * *

_(Naruto Shippuden OST 2 Track - Yogensha[Prophet])_

"Is the job done?"

Droplets of water splattered against the man's face, tricking down his head and chin only to descent towards the floor. Ringed eyes stared upwards into the atmosphere, metal towers reaching sky high as if to touch the clouds.

The woman floated in the air behind him, emotionless gaze faltering before breaking into a frustrated look, closing her eyes, "Yes, the job is done. The child survived with treatable injuries. The ninja stationed nearby have been eliminated swiftly as well. Currently, Sasori and the boy are staying at the supply village. Sasori recently just received the message from one of Orochimaru's summons."

"Good. Did Zetsu provide any information on the child's abilities?"

"According to Zetsu, he has been dealt with a kinjutsu originating for Iwagakure. The jutsu enables him to create clay bombs that can be detonated in the same manner as explosion tags. These bombs are produced from two mouths in the palms. Tobi is currently working at obtaining information on the jutsu. He believes it may catch your interest."

"Indeed it has," Pein faced towards the entrance, passing Konan who opened her eyes with a solemn expression while her body began to form from the sheets of paper, "I understand if you feel opposed to this. However, this jutsu may become useful to us, and so the boy will be just as precious. I will make sure his talent is not wasted."

"Will you...discuss this matter with Sasori?"

Pein remained silent, finally coming to a reply as he entered the shadows, "I see no immediate need to do so."

"You're going to keep him in the dark about this?"

"I don't see why I would be keeping him in the dark at all. Surely he has realized also of the potential the child holds. For now, we will rely on Zetsu to help determine what we do from here. We have not been given any orders beyond this. Anyway," The Akatsuki leader entered the magenta lamp light, sitting himself down on one round seat of three, "Have Ryusui and Yudachi prepare for our member's visit. I want the rooms cleaned out except for Sasori's."

Konan dropped her gaze to the puddle beneath her feet, observing her reflection become distorted as the droplets birthed ripples in the water, "Yes, Nagato."

* * *

It was heavy rain all over again, this time however, Deidara wasn't drenched or tired, protected by the small portable umbrella he received by a kind woman in the Village of Ink. Water dripped from the tips of the umbrella ribs, only for its own individual splash to drone out and become lost the millions of the droplets that fell. The duo had been walking for a few days now, and Sasori had let the child take occasional breaks only for regular needs such as food or washroom breaks.

The sound of rain pouring down on the ground was comforting. Ahead of him was his current travelling partner, Sasori, who claimed he didn't need an umbrella. Apparently, that huge puppet he called Hiruko was enough. His broken arm was hidden underneath a brown cloak the puppeteer had gifted him, claiming that a change of wardrobe would do him good as so at least his clothing would not be recognized. Sasori had used the same jutsu that the medical ninja did back in Iwa to speed up the healing process. Said something about how that whole fiasco was a big setback for him and that dealing with it was a pain. The cloak was a little itchy, but the child chose not to complain.

Glancing ahead from his hood, Deidara saw the silhouettes of towers in the distance, like a city. The closer they got to it, the heavier the rain got, and it didn't help that the cold, muddy puddles seemed to multiply along the unpaved path.

"Danna," The boy paused, gazing at the sky scrapers in the distance.

Hiruko halted and swung its head in the child's direction. The dead eyes were successful in making the blond think over his words.

"What's that? The tall things over there."

"That's Amegakure."

"Amegakure?" Deidara blinked, having never heard of such a village before. Having had to learn about the shinobi lands back in Iwa, he only knew of the five great nations. His teachers at the time never really touched upon the smaller villages and nations, simply looking them over.

The puppet bowed its head, resembling a nod, "Surely you remember what that guy called me. The guy I killed a few days ago."

"Jirou?" Deidara took a moment to think, "Oh yeah, he said something about you coming from this evil group right? Aka...Aka..."

"Akatsuki."

"Right!" He perked.

"Evil?...Well, he's not far from the mark," Sasori chortled, smirking in amusement inside the large puppet, "If you think about it, anyone could be called evil, depending on your preferences and experiences of course."

"Like what?"

A small chuckle came from inside the large puppet as it turned back to the road, continuing on its way. Deidara followed, still curious and slightly desperate to prove to himself that the puppeteer wasn't bad like that the Iwagakure ninja had claimed.

"Say you had some food and you were hungry, the first thing you'd do it eat it because you're hungry right?"

"Duh."

"Suddenly, someone else takes it. Neither of you wants to share, what do you think of that person?"

"That's rude. They should get their own," Deidara frowned, reminded of the puppy that he thought was begging for food. Whatever happened to that dog, his feelings would not change.

"Would you say that they're evil?"

The boy gave the Akatsuki an incredulous look, "Evil? I wouldn't say that but-" He was quickly cut off by the redhead.

"Now scale the situation. Instead of two people, two villages perhaps and they're both hungry, but there are only enough resources for one village. So naturally, they'll fight over those resources so they can sustain themselves and their own people. One side would naturally see the other side as enemies, people who want to take what is supposedly rightfully theirs. Maybe even go as far as to call the other side evil."

"However, both sides need those resources. Neither wants to share and will do anything to get what they need to survive. So, who's evil? Who's supposedly good and who's supposedly bad?"

Deidara was quiet, not exactly sure how to answer to the question. The towers in the distance seemed to get larger and clearer. A flock of birds retreated from one of the overhanging wires, disappearing into the clouds above. It was dreary here, especially with all this rain and rust on the pipes that seemed to line the streets he could barely see ahead. So this was Amegakure?

A memory stirred within the boy, remembering the sudden change of face that Onoki gave him when he had killed for the first time. Deidara had betrayed the village, his pleas of forgiveness unheard. In the end, no one saw the child for his art. _That's fine...I hate them too...my art was never meant to protect anyways. That village is stupid, cruel and evil-_

"Or are they both evil?"

There was a continued silence from the child so Sasori decided to keep going, "It's only a matter of perspective. There really isn't any specific definition to what makes a person truly bad or evil. One persons' fantasy is another persons' reality. That's just how it is, and nobody can escape that principle."

Deidara paused, staring at the muddy floor.

_So, does that mean...are we...are we both evil?_

* * *

**A/N: Ryusui and Yudachi are the guys who carry around the bodies at Pein's Tower. **


	15. God's Judgement

**God's Judgement**

Iron pipes lined the streets and ran in rows along the walls of the huge buildings and towers. Dark streaks seemed to drip from the pipes from dark red splotches on the outer layer, indicating a lack of maintenance and rust.

Power lines connected many of the metallic skyscrapers, giving off a look and feel that was completely new to the child. He didn't think places like these existed. Before, Deidara had always thought that the other villages looked almost the same as his own.

_I haven't seen a single person yet._

Glancing around, Deidara noticed large signs with white kanji written on them. If anything, this place resembled the description of a city more than a village.

"We're almost there," Hiruko's deep voice easily captured the boy's attention.

"...Sasori danna."

"What?" The puppet's head swung towards Deidara's direction, waiting intently to what he had to say.

"Why did we have to come here? We could have stayed in those other places. Why do we suddenly come here? The air is weird," He slurred his words nervously, not entirely comfortable with a place like this.

That question was expected. There was no hiding it now, with all that travelling and moving from place to place, Sasori wasn't all that surprised that the child would finally ask. Well, they were almost there anyway, no point not answering the question. Children were known to ask a lot of questions, this one seemed a little hesitant to do so. It was a little annoying, but he'd only have to deal with it for a little longer. It was time that Deidara learned his place in the world.

"I was ordered to come here."

A betrayed look immediately came onto the blonde's face. Had Sasori also abandoned him? Ordered here? By who? For what reason? All of a sudden, this place seemed stranger, and a lot more menacing. What had the child gotten himself into?

Noticing the look of discomfort at his words, Sasori tried to reason, "It's not to kill you, or anything bad like that. Simply, as a member of Akatsuki, I was called here to see to your judgement. Here in this world, it's harder to survive, especially as a criminal. Regardless of how you came to be labelled as such, you will be treated the very same as everyone else. I took you in and now we're going to see whether or not we'll be keeping you around. The Akatsuki will not tolerate having weaklings in it's number, but it's leader's call on whether or not you stay or die."

Sasori paused for a moment, expression unseen behind the shell of Hiruko. Taking his time to observe Deidara's reaction. So far, the kid had stayed strong, but there were many things he didn't know about him yet, "That's it. Now come and don't try to escape, or else they'll order me to kill you."

Hiruko turned back to the street and continued to lumber forward. Not bothered by the cold water splashing onto his cloak or the rain pouring down. The child lingered behind for a moment but quickly followed after, knowing the consequences he was to be left behind.

_Since when did he get so cold?_ Deidara huffed mentally, trying to distract himself from the situation by muttering under his breath. It didn't look like the puppeteer was noticing, which was a good thing on his part.

Soon, a large building came into sight. The rain had lightened slightly and lessened into a small drizzle. Nevertheless, he kept his umbrella open. A huge thick tower came into sight. At the very top, a large face was carved into the skyscraper, tongue sticking out with several pipes coming in and out the structure. For a second, Deidara stopped and squinted his eyes. He swore he saw someone sitting on the extended tongue of it.

There was no one there.

Following the lumbering puppet into the entrance of the building, leading into a large room with rows upon rows of pipes running from the bottom to the top of the building. The floor was less wet here but still reasonably damp. Steel pipes completely covered the left and right walls. The ceiling was extremely high, as high as the building itself.

"Don't speak or else," Sasori ordered, coming to a stop in the middle of the room. In suite, Deidara followed and put away his umbrella, seeing as there was no rain.

The sound of footsteps seemed to echo throughout the space, coming from the top of the tower where a hole with many pipes leading inside. Out of the darkness, Deidara could see a man wearing similar robes to Hiruko and Sasori stand at the top of the large square hole and gaze down at them.

Deidara gulped nervously as the man jumped off the ledge, descending towards them with no fear of the height on his face.

_Clack, clack, clack_

The moment the man landed, the clattering tail of Hiruko came into play. Springing out from behind the huge puppet, striking at the man. However, the tail bounced back as said man raised his hand, creating a barrier of some kind to protect himself from the puppet. There was no fear on his face.

Hiruko's tail retreated and disappeared behind Sasori's puppet under the cloak, leaving a pregnant silence to follow.

_D-did he just attack him?_ A bead of sweat rolled down the side of the child's face. Glancing up at the person standing before them. His face decorated with black piercings and ringed eyes that strangely didn't stand out much against his face. The Akatsuki's hair was ginger and spiky. A commanding aura filled the room, making Deidara want to shrink back and hide.

"You dare try to strike at your leader?" His voice was also commanding, a superior and arrogant edge to it.

"Hehe, I was just checking to see if it really was you. Can't be too careful." Sasori chuckled behind his shell, however no hint of a smile on his face.

"You think I'd so easily be taken out by an enemy? Know you're place," The pierced man's gaze fell onto Deidara, causing the child to resist flinching or looking away. This guy was on a completely different level from him, no point in getting himself in trouble now.

"I am Pein. I am God. I am also the leader of the Akatsuki," The man stated simply before continuing. "You are Deidara, hailing from Iwagakure. Do you know why you have been brought here?"

The boy shifted on his feet and shook his head tensely, finding no strength to speak in Pein's presence. Something seemed to catch in his throat, unable to find the correct words much less figure out how to utter them properly. He felt like an infant unable to use language.

"Did Sasori not tell you?"

Deidara glanced at Hiruko from the corner of his eye, "Y-yes, he did."

"I see. Well then, to put it simply, we have brought you here to join Akatsuki. Considering you're age and skill level, it'd be impossible to make you a full-member right now, so you'll do as Sasori's subordinate and student at the moment."

_Student?_ The child's face lit up at the familiar word.

"You'll graduate that title when you've been chosen to become a full-member of the Akatsuki, that is, if you live long enough. From here on, you will call me leader and nothing else. Betrayal will not be tolerated within this group, for your abilities especially will be valuable to us."

Ringed eyes moved down to Deidara's cloak, where his broken arm was, seemingly able to see through the cloth, "You're injured."

"There was a scuffle a few days ago," The redhead explained, "He may need more time to heal."

"I understand," Glancing away from the two, Pein looked past them. Eyes settling on the entrance of the building. The puppet master noticed and swung Hiruko's head behind him. Deidara watched in curiosity but didn't dare question or speak about it. It wasn't long before Leader's eyes made contact with the child, causing him to flinch slightly.

"You two will stay here while your injuries heal. All missions are currently taken, it should be some time before there are new ones. Do you understand, Deidara?"

The child was about to answer but was quickly distracted as a flurry of paper started to gather in one place beside Pein, forming the shape of a pretty woman with blue hair and a white paper rose set on a bun in her hair. From what Deidara could see, she seemed very beautiful, but what countered that was her stagnant expression.

Deidara stared at her in awe for a few moments, however finally realizing after a time that his answer had been taking a while. Lowering his head in submission, the child bowed respectfully.

"Yes, Leader."

* * *

Deidara sat quietly in the workshop, eyeing an unfinished marionette slumped in the corner of the room. Sitting cross-legged on the bed, he shifted his weight on it in discomfort. Easily, he could tell the mattress was rarely used, since it felt so stiff.

Surrounding the bed were puppet parts dangling from the ceiling. Held by a wire on a metal bar that allowed them to hang like clothes. Many unfinished puppets were bare of clothing while others were carelessly thrown to the floor. The work desk a little ways away from the power tools in the next room that seemed to cost an arm and a leg. Blue prints for things that Deidara didn't quite understand lay crooked near the lamp light, the other plans were crumpled up and now littered the floor around the trash. It wasn't too terribly messy, Deidara had seen worse from himself anyway.

It was his luck that Sasori hadn't seen his mouths. Even luckier that he hadn't asked about anything related to them. However, even Deidara knew his luck would run out. The redhead would see eventually, and the child wasn't sure if he wanted to witness the reaction. Knowing what a few of the people were like here, his hand mouths no longer seemed so strange. Still, he couldn't help but feel hesitant about this. These were strangers-well, everyone a part from Sasori, whom he had grown comfortable with.

Glancing towards the desk, Deidara remembered how Sasori had specifically instructed him not to touch anything or leave the room. Apparently, he was to talk with the man who was god, or claimed to be. The boy wasn't complaining of course. Ever since the incident a few days ago, the last thing he wanted to do was get killed.

"Hm?"

Deidara's head shot up. The door creaked open, a tall cloaked figure peeked in from the hallway. The child's eyes widened, face paling slightly at the sight before him.

"Looks like Sasori brought a stray animal home."

* * *

"That child is now your responsibility. I trust that you will train him well, Sasori," Pein gazed out onto the city. The rain had finally stopped, allowing sun rays to escape through the small gaps in the clouds above the endless skyscrapers in the distance.

Hiruko's head nodded is response, watching as the wind blew on the Akatsuki's black cloak. The man had truly thought of himself as a god, observing the village from the highest tower. It was through that thought that Pein gave himself authority over the Akatsuki.

Konan, or otherwise known as 'lady-angel' stood nearby in the shadows of the room. Silently observing. It was an amusing sight, to see her expression waver every now and then. Either it was a teary eye or a slightly frown on her lips. The usual monotone face seemed on the edge of crumbling today.

"Zetsu provided me with intel on the child and Iwagakure. He's caused quite a bit of destruction using his abilities. If anything, he may turn out to be a useful asset. Especially at this time, the Akatsuki are low on members."

"I understand."

"Zetsu will have his subordinate deliver information to you about the boy's abilities. Look over it and see what you can do to help his skills develop. After he's healed, I will occasionally assign solo missions later on. Whether or not you both execute the assignment depends on you entirely. I assume this is enough to prove my trust?" Pein glanced at the Akatsuki member form the corner of his eye.

"...His abilities? What kind of abilities?" The question had been nagging at Sasori for a while now but he resisted from prying until he got to the tower. He had to be sure first that Deidara would be accepted into the organization.

Leader turned away from the view, gaze settling on the puppeteer's creation. Soon, he began walking and made his way past the member into the tower. Sasori's eyes followed, still anticipating his answer. He hated to be kept waiting, but he knew the Akatsuki leader to be a man of few words so whatever he had to say was worth the wait.

"I believe you should ask the boy himself. Perhaps he could explain to you, better than I ever could."

With that, Pein disappeared behind the wall into the corridor, leaving Konan and Sasori. The woman soon took a few steps towards the door but paused, turning to the redhead with a less than neutral gaze.

"Sasori," Konan said.

The puppeteer swept Hiruko's head in the woman's direction, awaiting her next few words. The female's face struggled to keep it's passiveness, eyes glazed over as if she were not truly look at the other. Her eyebrows tilted upwards.

"You better take care of that boy."

Konan shifted on her feet, knowing well enough that she could not expect a killer to comply with her request. To join an organization in order to stay alive was one thing, but to convince one to care for the well-being of another, a child much less...

"I will."

* * *

The corridor seemed to creak with sounds, the rusted pipes all over the building created a constant distant banging as well as some other sounds that the puppet master couldn't quite describe. Most of the building wasn't habitable anyways, not to stay over a night. The living quarters were actually quite minimalistic, only possessing rooms which were rather small at that. Sasori had gotten the biggest room as well as some others connecting to it in order to support his career as a puppeteer. The rest of the building was simply a complex of passageways and empty spaces, pipes of various sizes lining the entire surface.

Sasori picked up the pace, wondering silently if the child had obeyed and stayed in the room rather than wander throughout the tower. He didn't want to think of what would happen if he indeed did disobey, considering the type of the people here.

Emerging from a corner, a man walked into sight. Long straight black hair covered most of his pale-white face, a mischievous smile upon his lips. Sasori narrowed his eyes within the puppet.

"Orochimaru."

"Ah, good to see you," The pair paused in the hallway to face each other, "I apologize for not making it to the rendezvous. Something came up you see, I hope you are able to forgive me."

"I don't forgive people for making me wait."

The pale man feigned a look of surprise, "Oh? Than how will you ever take care of that child of yours? Deidara was it? Patience is always necessary."

_What?_ Sasori looked behind the snake, quick to note that his room was just down the hall. His partner had just come by from there. Did Orochimaru find him? If so, he wouldn't know the kid's name. His heart began to thrum faster, growling within Hiruko, "What did you do to him?" He snapped.

"Nothing of note. Please do remind him to keep his mouth shut because he seems very edible. I'd rather he not get in my way while he's tinkering with your toys."

"I'll make sure of that."

"Well then, I'll be off," Orochimaru continued past his partner, walking towards the exit of the living quarters.

Once the snake had disappeared, Hiruko was suddenly animated, rushing off towards the room. The door came into sight, opened completely to rom. Upon approach, the puppet slowed in attempt to not alarm whatever was inside. Returning to its normal gate, Sasori got inside, glancing upwards towards the child on the bed.

Deidara seemed normal save for the fact that he seemed seemed paler than usual. The moment he had entered, the boy nearly jumped but quickly relaxed upon the sight of the other. He crossed his legs, leaning over the edge of the bed.

"That was Orochimaru?"

Mumbled words indicated something had happened, a slight worry building within the redhead. The puppet clicked and clacked as the large, ball-jointed tail slithered out from underneath the cloak. Pushing the door closed, Deidara was surprised it didn't slam due to how powerful the tail looked. Naturally, the child shrugged away from it, now knowing what harm it could cause. Hiruko itself was fine, but the tail was something else. If anything, he didn't want to get too close to it. He hadn't exactly known about the part until it attacked Pein.

Hiruko lumbered towards the corner of the room, avoiding other half-finished puppets that lay strewn across the floor. Settling in the corner, something clicked before the top half of the puppet raised itself, revealing Sasori sitting inside.

"You met him?" The redhead asked, getting up and stepping out of the shell.

"He's creepy."

"You're pretty pale, what happened?"

Deidara remembered when the puppeteer asked the question before, knowing full-well now that holding it in was a bad choice. He shifted his hands in his lap. Even then, he'd avoid parts of it for now, "I told him about you and then he told me to stay out of his way. He made a scary face."

"He does that a lot. Make sure you listen to that."

The child straightened as he observed the other use chakra strings to pull the mask-like top of Hiruko back into place. Walking across the room, he sat down at the desk and turned on the lamp. Bits of wood dust were visible floating in the light.

Curiously, Deidara hopped off the bed and made his way towards the desk. His head tilted upwards slightly as he gazed at the blueprints that the other was currently reading over. Blue eyes squinted for the writing was rather small, moving a little closer to Sasori to see better.

"What's that?"

Sasori glanced down, slightly surprised to see the child so close. He still wasn't quite used to having someone so close to him before while he was working, especially in his own room. Usually, nobody would risk going into his workshop, much less move so closely towards him.

"They're blueprints."

"I know that!" Deidara snapped, "But you write really small."

"You wouldn't understand anyway."

"Yeah I would," He protested.

"No you wouldn't."

"Sasori no danna!" The child pouted, glaring.

"Don't start."

"No."

Sasori groaned mentally. There was no way he was going to get anything done like this. It wasn't usual for him to have a kid in the same room and since the brat was probably going to be around for a while...No point in trying to argue with a seven year old.

Folding the paper, he put it down in the corner of the desk and pushed back his chair. Deidara stumbled back, a bit of fear flashed on his face, thinking he was in trouble. Facing the blonde, Sasori made eye contact, making sure that he had the child's full attention.

"Those men back at the last village. They were Iwagakure ninja and were no doubt after you. It isn't abnormal to send out a few ninja after those who commit treason but the squad was rather large for you. Considering what that last Iwa ninja said to you, I'm assuming you stole something. Something _very_ important."

Sasori spoke sternly, noticing as Deidara's expression turned nervous and his hand twitched slightly at the mention at the word 'stole'.

"Is it about your hands? Because you've never shown me them."

"...I don't want to," Deidara murmured quietly, stepping back.

Still denying it huh? Sasori knew he wouldn't be getting anywhere like this. He didn't want to pull this card but...well, the kid would figure it out eventually. If Hiruko wasn't much of a scare, than hopefully he could trust the brat not to panic.

"Deidara," He spoke softly, attempting to ease the child's fears, "How does an exchange sound?"

"Trade what?" The blonde furrowed his eyebrows, somewhat skeptical.

"It'll be simple, I'll show you one of my secrets and you'll show me your hands. Does that sound good?"

"...No," He shook his head.

"You're being difficult, brat," Sasori held more of a strain on his voice, trying not to show his frustration too much.

Noticing the undertone, Deidara allowed the offer a second thought before finally mumbling 'fine', thinking it wouldn't be much. What was the worst that could happen? Hearing this, the redhead made a small smile and leaned a little closer.

"Alright," Putting a hand on his sleeve, he pulled it up the arm until the elbow was visible. Two lines were apparent around the elbow, showing a separation in skin, or what appeared to be skin. Deidara's eyes widened, immediately realizing how similar these marks where to the line around the puppeteer's neck that he saw earlier.

"Thing is, I'm actually a puppet. My arm isn't real, and nor is most of my body. I've turned myself into a weapon, a piece of art."

Barely nodding, the child hesitantly stepped forward, wanting to touch it. Raising his free hand, he paused and gazed up at Sasori, looking for the 'ok'.

"Go ahead. I don't break so easily."

Continuing, he put his hand on the wooden appendage. Surprised to see how real it felt, how close to skin it was. The only giveaway that it wasn't as real as it felt was the fact that it wasn't all soft and squishy, seeming to having something under the outer layer which most likely was wood or metal. Deidara's mouth grew into a smile. Fascinated by this, he giggled as he ran his finger over the line near the elbow.

"No wonder your face looks like a rock!" He exclaimed with a grin, easily earning a glare from the redhead. However, he didn't notice this as the boy was too focused on what the outside layer of the arm was made of.

"_Okay, brat_. I kept my side of the deal, now you do yours." Sasori pulled his arm away, letting the long sleeve fall back into place, bringing Deidara's attention away from it.

Glancing at his still broken arm, the blonde directed an unsure look towards the puppeteer, "I can only show you one."

"That's fine."

"...Okay."

Nervously, the child held out his hand, letting Sasori handle it. Turning it over to the palm, the redhead was underwhelmed only to see what looked like a cut right across the hand. This was it?

"I stole a...I think it was called kinjutsu or something but I didn't know I was stealing it. He made it look like it was okay."

"Who?"

"Jirou."

"Oh," Turning back to the hand, Sasori gently pulled back the sleeve, looking for any symbols or kanji but only met with nothing. For something so important, he expected to see much more than this. Maybe a seal or a long chain of symbols or kanji that would give him an idea of what the jutsu was for.

"I trusted him," Deidara mumbled.

"Then you learned your first lesson, don't trust just anyone. Even if they come from your own village. Didn't your parents ever teach you about strangers?" Sasori gazed up at the child. Met with a puzzled expression, it took the puppeteer for a few seconds to realize that he had none.

"...Never mind."

Directing his eyes back to the hand, he could see barely anything wrong with it. The redhead had noticed before that the boy had always wore gloves, never taking them off in front of anyone. Was this all there was to hide? To be perfectly honest, Sasori expected much more.

"This is it?"

The child shook his head, "It's sleeping."

"Sleeping?" Sasori asked.

"You have to wake it up."

_Wake it up?_ "How do I wake it up?"

"Poke it or something," Deidara shrugged.

Obeying, the elder poked the hand. Seeing no response, he tried again, poking and prodding it until the line seemed to move and wriggle. The redhead paused, observing it wearily before poking it again. No response.

"Dei-"

"It's biting you."

Glancing down, Sasori quickly retreated his finger from the sudden appearance of a mouth. Frowning at it, he avoided poking it again to observe it as the mouth opened and closed, making primal sounds.

"It's been sleeping more. I don't know why," The child looked at his hand in a concerned way. Normally, it would rather active during this time of day but ever since the other one got broken.., "You think there's something wrong with it?" Looking up, he saw Sasori pull out a cloth to wipe his finger from the saliva.

"I don't know kid, I've never seen this before. Tell me more about it, maybe I can figure something out."

"Well, it's a summoning animal so you can just give it medicine right?"

"Summoning animal?" The former suna-nin repeated.

"Can you?"

"I can't fix what's not broken, maybe it's just lazy. Besides, it might not even be sick."

"But it sleeps a lot! I sleep a lot when I'm sick."

"Are you sick?"

"No."

"Then how can your hands be sick but not you?"

Deidara shook his head again.

_Not the brightest_, "Look, we'll deal with that later but what do you mean by summoning animal?" He asked while watching the child climb onto the bed to get more comfortable.

"It was a summoning jutsu thing. I actually wanted a bird or dragon but I got these," The boy extended his arm, giving the puppeteer a full view of the now active hand mouth.

_Symbiosis? I've never heard of a symbiotic summoning animal._ This was definitely news to Sasori. He couldn't wait to get the extra info that Zetsu was currently fetching. Though he doubted the blond knew everything about these mouths, he'd try to squeeze as much information about them as possible. The kinjutsu had easily caught his interest, for it wasn't everyday that he could see one in effect.

"What else do you know?"

"Umm...well, they're part of my body now. They eat clay and make it explode. I have one on my chest and that one sleeps a lot. I can taste with them," The child ended off.

Sasori remained silent, expecting more information until he realized Deidara was done. "That's all?"

"That's all I remember."

"Okay."

"So are they sick?"

"Deidara, I wouldn't know with what you explained to me. Sickness isn't like a cut, you can't put a bandage on it and expect it to get better."

"You don't give sick people bandages."

And with that, Sasori immediately knew he wasn't going to get anything done today.


	16. The Treasurer

**New Faces**

__Tap...__

__ Tap...__

__ Tap...__

__ Tap...__

__ Tap...__

Pein eyed the new visitor, immediately noticing the absence of someone. The new man wore mask that covered his face while the black cloak with red clouds covered everything else. Green eyes glinted in the new sun rays. The two silently faced each other, both acknowledging the others existence. Tension filled the air as the Akatsuki leader turned to face him.

"Your partner, Kakuzu?" Pein enquired.

Responding with silence, the look in the old man's eyes sent the message loud and clear. The ginger-haired man sighed exasperatedly, echoing throughout the entrance.

"Akatsuki cannot afford to keep finding you partners. That was your fourth one."

"If that's the case then make me a solo worker," Kakuzu grumbled.

"I can't do that."

_ "_And why not? You'd lose less members and I'd get what I want. It's fair."

"Making you a solo worker would only make the other members want the same thing. Zetsu will be our one and only solo and that's it. I won't make any more exceptions."

"Tch!" His eyebrows furrowed. Leader would learn eventually, he wouldn't accept anybody as his partner. Every and all partners would be killed and their corpses put to use. Very rarely did he ever get along with other people, trust wasn't never exactly his thing.

Turning towards the corridor on his left, the man started his way towards it.

"And where do you think you're going?"

"I'm tired. As an elder, I'd expect you to know what kind of strain these missions put on me," Kakuzu snapped.

"We already have members staying."

"What?" He tensed. Being the non-social type, he hated not only partners but other people in general. Most of them never brought in income and did little to help with the finances of the organization. If anything, Kakuzu didn't want to have to deal with someone else while he was resting.

"Sasori is here with his subordinate along with Orochimaru."

"Subordinate?"

Pein nodded, "Will you still be staying?"

Kakuzu took a few moments to think it over. Despite the discomforts, he didn't mind the puppeteer too much. He was competent and rarely bothered anyone, especially since recent but his subordinate...well, never once had he met one of the redhead's subordinates before. Though Sasori did spend more money than the usual Akatsuki member for his 'art', he put it to some good use. The two had a joint mission before and it went rather well since neither spoke to each other unless necessary.

Orochimaru was a member nobody liked. Though he was as quiet as his partner, the man held an eerie air about him. He was strong, but rarely did much of anything to note. Kakuzu never spoke with the snake, often steering clear of him even if a bounty was at hand. He wasn't sure why, but his instincts would tell him to stay on edge around the man. As long as they didn't converse, things should be fine.

Subordinates were a bother, but he had been hearing things from Zetsu...

"I'll deal with it," He replied before continuing into the corridor. "For now."

* * *

Sasori gazed ahead, frowning at the distance that the child had between them in the hallway. The kid was hungry, and since the rooms were only for sleeping and staying in, the organization had trusted their own members to get food for themselves. Normally, the puppeteer wouldn't have such a need. As a puppet, food had become unnecessary for him and if he did try to eat, the food would only get stuck somewhere in his body and make a mess. Early on, Sasori did acknowledge the fact that in order to keep his heart pumping, he needed nutrition. Fluids were enough, and could easily be cleaned.

Deidara on the other hand, wasn't a puppet. He actually needed to eat and all the normal things a normal human being would need. Sasori couldn't just hand the kid some money and tell him to go buy something himself. Amegakure was a large place and with the state it was left over from the second shinobi world war, it was still developing. Pick-pockets were to be expected along with possible gangs and people who do anything to get money or food.

There was no way he was gonna let Deidara go out on his own.

The child hurried down the hall, turning a corner and increasing his distance from the elder. Footsteps could be heard and assured Sasori that the brat was still nearby. Soon, the footsteps stopped. This didn't worry the redhead, thinking that Deidara had simply stopped to wait for him. At least the brat was smart enough not to get himself lost.

Casually, he sauntered past the corner and followed the child before coming to a full stop. Body becoming tense and weary.

Deidara stood frozen, eyes wide with fear and confusion as he gazed up at the man before him. Piercing green eyes intimidated him for the rest of the tanned person's face was covered in a hood and mask. The man was very tall, much taller than any person Deidara had ever seen. It didn't help that past the green eyes was a red sclera, making his eyes look seemingly bloodshot and eerie.

"What's this?" The low voice was even lower than Hiruko's. This snapped Deidara out of his trance, causing him to stumble back and run towards the only safety he knew, Sasori.

Hiding behind the redhead, the child peeked his head out, hand grasping at the Akatsuki's sleeve. Glancing up, he noticed rigid look from his danna. The atmosphere felt heavy as the two Akatsuki continue to stare. To Deidara, it looked like the moment in a movie before a fight breaks out. They always looked cool in anime's and manga's he'd read but in real life, being so close to what could be a battlefield didn't feel very thrilling.

"What's that little brat doing in here?"

"That little_ brat_ is my subordinate. I've taken him under my wing."

"This is unexpected...especially from someone like you, Sasori of the red sand," Kakuzu emphasized the title, intentionally annoying the redhead, "Children cost money. I can't believe that Leader let this thing affiliate with us."

A glare was directed towards Deidara, causing him to yelp slightly at the coldness of it and hide behind the elder completely. Normally, people like this were no problem for the blond. He messed with people for fun after all, it was really the only thing that was amusing back in Iwa, but now...well, this was a whole other ball game. These weren't just old men, these were old men that could kill. Acting cute didn't look like it would do anything at all in this case, Deidara still needed time to learn what tactics worked around here. For now, danna was all he had.

"The kid's my responsibility. You don't have to do anything."

"What about your budget? You get the money from me remember? Don't think I'll give you more than what you already get. I won't waste my time or money on non-members."

"Leader made a clear order that I'm to raise this kid," Sasori smirked in a smug manner. "In other words, that means that I'll need more money. Since this counts as an assignment, it's the equivalent of a mission and mission costs always need to be tended to. So, if you don't give me the money I need to complete this mission than I can't perform it. However, it was an order from leader and extended, an order indirectly for you to make sure completing it is affordable."

_ The masked man growled at Sasori, not liking what he was hearing. He had lived for a long time and knew how expensive raising children could be. Some parents even went as far as to stork people with their unwanted babies since they didn't have the means to support a child. _

"Still, it's not my assignment."

Sasori opened his mouth to make a comeback but was interrupted as he felt another tug on his sleeve. Looking down, he was met with Deidara, who looked a little nervous.

"I'm hungry!" He whined.

"Deidara, this is Kakuzu," Sasori gestured towards the other, "He's our treasurer, meaning he takes care of the money-related things in the Akatsuki. Don't provoke him and you'll live."

The child blinked and noticed that the redhead had started walking forward. Common sense told him that he should probably stick close so he followed him. Almost pressing up to the wall as the blonde tried to out as much distance as possible between him and the old man. Once they were past, Deidara hurried in front of Sasori again, glancing back curiously at Kakuzu.

"He's really tall."

"I've seen taller."

* * *

The dango restaurant was quite a while away from the tower. It was so far that the skyscrapers had thinned to a more rural background with trees and grass. Everything was wet due to the rain but the sun rays made the view beyond the small restaurant nice to watch. The restaurant faced the countryside, hills of grass and trees were visible here along with a pathway out of Ame. It was a nice sight, to see the clouds roll by.

Deidara sat at a table outside, eating mitarashi dango while he watched a pair of crows quarrel in the distance. Often chasing each other and occasionally fighting mid-air. The child had always wondered what it would be like to fly. He knew that Onoki had the power to give people flight in the Iwagakure military but not once did he ever get to feel the effects. As a child, Deidara admired the birds, wondering what it would be like to fly.

Beside him, Sasori sat with a cup of tea. Wearing a rice hat with white pieces of cloth draping down from the inside to cover his face. He had been silent the whole time, only taking sips from his cup every now and then.

Soon, the show was over and the two crows fled the scene, squawking the entire way. Deidara pouted, wanting to see the two fight again but could see nothing else amusing in the field. Taking another bite of his dango, he gazed over at Sasori.

"Why are you wearing that?" He asked, referring to the rice hat on the puppeteer's head.

"To conceal my identity."

Deidara raised a brow skeptically, "Even if they can't see your face, people can still see your clothing."

"The people in Amegakure are allied with the Akatsuki."

"So why do you have to hide your face?"

"Enemy ninja may take in a citizen from Ame and interrogate them for info on us. Even if they did see one of us, they wouldn't be able to tell who. You can't be too careful."

"Can I get one?" The child bounced in his seat eagerly.

"No."

"Eh? Why not!?" Deidara huffed.

"Only the members get these hats. Subordinates don't need this kind of protection since you're not as important to the organization."

"...Can I wear it?"

"No."

"Please?!" The boy pleaded, using puppy eyes to perhaps win over the redhead.

"No."

The puppy face was quickly replaced with a face of frustration. He knew it, tactics like that weren't going to work anymore, at least not all the time like they used to. Deidara took a mental note to find time to try and find new tactics to win over adults.

"These hats aren't special or anything. It's really just a rice hat so I don't get why it's so important to you," Sasori tipped his head up, giving the child a puzzled look.

"Well, it's kind of like a headband I guess."

"Headband? Didn't you have get one from Iwa?"

"No. I'm not a genin yet."

...

"...What?" Sasori tried to make the child repeat what he said, hoping that he wasn't hearing the brat correctly. There was no way that the kid wasn't a ninja, no way.

"I said: I'm not a genin!"

"...So, you're saying you haven't learned advance chakra manipulation?"

"...No..," Deidara looked at his danna like he was speaking a whole other language. Chakra manipulation? Sounded cool but it wasn't like he knew what it was.

The puppeteer stared at the child with a bewildered expression. Giving a few moments to let this sink in. The kid didn't know basic formations nor did he know simple techniques like walking on water or climbing up objects. From what the redhead experienced back in the academy, students didn't learn this kind of stuff until they were genin. If Deidara didn't know even the basic curriculum about any of these...

At this realization, Sasori slouched in his seat, defeated.

"You can't be serious..."

"Danna?" The boy tilted his head curiously.

* * *

Two Days Later...

* * *

It had been at least two days since the two had arrived at the tower. By now, the child had grown accustomed to the winding hallways and stairs. It was easy to get an idea of what the building was like since most the hallways lead to giant rooms that sometimes didn't even have a ceiling. These giant skylight rooms were lined with pipes all the way up to the top of the building.

Kakuzu's wing was a place that Deidara had easily learned to avoid. The guy usually hung around the 3rd floor. Despite the fact that the treasurer ignored the boy, he still avoided him out of instinct. Kakuzu was really tall and easily intimidating, especially with his gaze. Now, the brat really didn't have much respect for his elders. Being raised by an old, cranky kage and forced to shine stones didn't leave him one bit of respect for old men in particular. However, this guy was different. It wasn't too long ago that the puppet master informed Deidara that the treasurer didn't discriminate too much with whoever he decided to kill.

He didn't think that making puppets and fixing them was such a hobby for Sasori. Nowadays, it seemed to be the only thing he did. Usually, the blonde could find him in the workshop sitting at the desk or working at the power tools. Completely engrossed in his work, Deidara didn't see much to gain from bothering him. He was never allowed to do anything with the puppets. View and touch were fine, but Sasori made it clear that he didn't want the kid to break anything.

The space he was given was rather small. First off, Sasori had given him the bed and everything within five feet of the bed.

That was it.

Everything around that was the redhead's.

Currently, the child sat on the floor with a drawing book that his danna had bought him. It was bright turquoise and kept together like a normal book to the spine. The pages were rough and thick, holding up well to the pencil.

Deidara kept drawing. Sasori hadn't enquired further on his hands. Once a day, Sasori would gesture him over and use that glowing hand thing again to heal his arm. It never lasted for long, usually just a second or two before it would be over and shooed back to the bed. Probably something to speed up the healing, or what Deidara understood about healing.

The pages of the book were covered in bird drawings. Many of them were crows or random birds that Deidara had the pleasure of seeing flying by the windows or ones he had seen on the way here. The drawings weren't the best he had done. The child had to admit, he wasn't all that skilled with a pencil and his handwriting skills were worse than average. Not that he had a problem with writing, but his words often looked –if not all the time –like chicken scratch.

Drawings were boring; but they managed to keep him busy. Nothing exciting happened around here, or well, not around this wing of the building. Deidara wasn't allowed to do many things, one of those things was to leave this floor without Sasori tailing him. At night, Deidara wasn't allowed to leave the room accept for things like using the bathroom.

Life here wasn't that bad, it was just boring. Avoiding grumpy, old, masked men and snaky pale snakes weren't a thrill at all. Peace was nice for the first day or so, but it soon grew old.

_Knock! _

_ Knock!_

_ Knock!_

His head whirled towards the door, heart thumping since it was so close to the bed. Curiously, Deidara put down his pencil and got up to get the door but was stopped when Sasori beat him to it.

Twisting the handle, the door was opened a crack to reveal someone unfamiliar behind in the hall. The guy didn't wear a cloak that signified he was in the Akatsuki. The door was pushed, causing Sasori to step back as the other person intruded the room.

Another man, this time with orange mask with a spiralling pattern. His hair was short and spiky while he wore a long sleeve shirt and pants that seemed the be the same ones that the Akatsuki wore. Metal plates on his shoulder and thighs, it was no question this man was a ninja.

"Sasori! It's been a while!" He made a gesture for a hug, easily irking the puppeteer who refused while shrugging back. Getting the message, the masked man laughed in a high-pitch voice, "Sorry that Mr. Zetsu took so long! He wanted to get the scroll at first but that seemed hard to do so we just settled for the documents in the library! I hope you're not mad!"

The redhead closed his eyes for a moment in annoyance before speaking again, "Just hand it over."

"Gladly!" Pulling out an envelope, he handed it over. Sasori opened it and pulled out the few first papers, skimming them over to make sure that Tobi hadn't messed up.

"We wanted to get them from the private library for the Tsuchikage first but it seemed they were moved to another area!" He scratched the back of his head awkwardly.

_Tsuchikage!? _Deidara's eyes widened in alarm. Though it wasn't completely detectable at his sudden shock, the swirly masked man turned to him. Almost as if he sensed the blonde's tenseness.

"Hey! Hey! Who's this?"

The next thing the boy knew, he was being hoisted into the air at a dizzying speed by the masked man. Being held from his shoulders were easily uncomfortable for the child for his quickly started kicking in the air to get away from the older ninja. Said ninja giggled loudly as he twirled on the spot, giving the boy slight nausea.

"Danna!" Deidara cried, already managing to plant a kick straight into the spiral mask. Despite this, the guy seemed unfazed.

"Put him down or else," Sasori warned, throwing the taller man a dark look.

The masked man responded with a squeak and dropped Deidara onto the bed. The child swooned from being spun in circles so many times, seeing stars floating around his head.

"Sorry! I guess I got excited. It's not everyday I see a live kid in your workshop!" He apologized, "So, what's it doing in your room anyway?"

"I'm taking care of him. He's also my subordinate."

"Wow! So, that means we're both subordinates!" The masked man clapped as Sasori walked away from the scene, folder in hand.

Kneeling at the bed, he waited for Deidara to snap out of his daze before pointing a thumb to himself, "I'm Tobi! Who are you!?"

"Deidara," The child glared at Tobi, puffing out his cheeks.

"Awe! You're cute! I hope Sasori keeps you for a long long time! You know, the Akatsuki is such a dreary group, nobody ever wants to have fun! They're all serious! Say, how old are you? Five? Ten?"

"Seven." Deidara answered immediately.

"_Seven_? Aren't you a little young? Oh well, doesn't matter too much eh? Haha!" Tobi smirked behind his mask and patted the blonde on the head, earning another annoyed glare from Sasori who approached the two.

Sensing the glare burned into the back of his head, the masked-man looked over his shoulder and quickly yelped at the sight of the puppeteer's dark look. Tobi backed away from the boy, keeping a weary eye on Sasori as his eyes followed him to the door.

"You don't have to look at me like that!" Tobi put his hands up in defence.

"I can allow one brat, but not two. Someone has to go."

"Right, right! Sorry."

Zetsu's subordinate turned to the door and hastily tried to get out, but was stopped by a hand on his shoulder. In terror, he froze. Taking a few moments to contemplate before turning slowly behind him, only to be met with the doll-like face of Sasori, who looked rather unhappy.

"Actually, on second thought...Tobi, you like kids don't you?"

Said man nodded stiffly, terrified at the thought of making the wrong move.

"That's good, because I have a job for you. Surely you don't have anything else to do meanwhile?" Sasori made an innocent facade, smirking.

Tobi shook his head.

"Excellent. From now on, you'll be Deidara's new babysitter," The puppeteer shoved the child into the masked man roughly, "You can handle that right?"

"Of course!" Tobi saluted.

"Danna!"

"You'd better, or else I'll kill you and I'm sure Zetsu wouldn't mind," And with that, the elder slammed the door.

Visibly, Tobi let his head fall, giving a huge sigh as the boy walked up to the door and started to knock on it, pleading for the redhead to open up and let him in.

_Knock_

"Danna!"

_Knock_

"Danna!"

_Knock, knock_

Seeing no response, the child pouted angrily and threw a glare at the wooden door. "At least give me my book!"

Promptly, the request was obeyed and the door opened for a brief moment, throwing a book flatly onto the floor. The door was about to close but paused for a second for a pencil and eraser to be thrown out as well before it slammed shut. A repetitive rhythm sounded as the pencil rolled across the surface to the base of the wall. Deidara stood out in the silence for a second before grumbling and picking up his belongings. His danna was so moody some times. Didn't even give him a warning before throwing him out with –he turned towards Tobi –this guy...

Tobi sprang up and straightened hiss back, stretching, "Okay Deidara! Where do you want to go?"

"...I don't know," He shrugged.

"Huh? What do you mean you don't know?"

"Well, where do you want to go?"

"Hmm...I don't know!" The masked man copied the child and shrugged.

"...You're dumb," Deidara crossed his arms, unimpressed.

"Huh!? Where'd that come from!?"

* * *

A squirrel sniffed the air, ears alert as the wind blew a scent above the trees. In its distracted state, the chestnut slipped from its fingers and tumbled down the tree trunk, falling into the yellowing grass silently.

Realizing this, the squirrel hurried down the tree, pausing occasionally to look out for any danger. Once at the bottom, he it approached the chestnut, grabbing it and shoving it into its cheek pouch before dashing off into the undergrowth as white papers started to gather in the clearing.

The white paper materialized a woman with blue hair, or Konan as her name was. Stepping onto the grass, the paper disappeared as she walked towards a particularly large tree. From afar, this tree looked like any other in this forest in exception for it's superior height and width. However, on closer inspection, one could see the outside was made with papers with a bark texture printed on to it. This tree was as real as a paper tiger, but it wasn't made to be enjoyed.

The papers separated for Konan and let her walk through, closing and sealing behind her. Inside, her expression softened slightly at the sight of her old friend, only skin and bone as he sat inside a mechanical walker, his only tool for mobility in his crippled state.

At Konan's arrival, Nagato looked up, ringed eyes focused on his remaining comrade.

"It's still so far away...the demon statue is still in preparation..," His voice seemed strained, quiet still.

"Don't struggle, you haven't eaten yet," The lady averted her eyes away from Nagato, hurrying over to where she kept the food.

"Konan-"

"I said: _don't struggle_," Konan ordered sternly, appearing again with a bowl of natto and some chopsticks.

Making her way over to the walker, she gave Nagato a concerned look, "Can you eat yourself or do I have to feed you?"

"I can do it...there's been no need to excessively use Yahiko right now."

Leaning back, he tugged at his arms, pulling them out the holders. He huffed, and took a moment to catch his breath, even the slightest bit of energy exertion made him tire. Embarrassing for a so called 'god'. Receiving the bowl of natto from her, he ate without hurry.

Konan remained silent, occasionally glancing up to make sure that her friend was doing alright. Nagato had always been her number one concern, he always came first, before anything. He was all she had left, and whatever she had before no longer mattered.

"I think...the child should be moved to another member."

"Again? You've been rather..," The crippled man took a short break before continuing. "...active about this recently. I've never known you to hate Sasori."

"I don't," She gazed down, staring at her feet, "It's just...he can be..."

"Be what?"

"...Never mind."

With that, the paper lady turned away from Nagato. Her face was slightly shadowed, making her expression hard to read.

"I'll be outside."


	17. Introducing Tobi!

**Introducing Tobi!**

Right now, the blonde was busy sketching away, barely paying any attention to his surroundings. Eyes focused on the page, the book was angled so that Tobi wasn't able to see the contents of whatever the child decided was worth drawing. A tree shaded them from the last remaining rays of sunlight of the season, winter was coming soon, Deidara and Sasori would surely be moving away from the North shortly. In Ame, winter comes fast and things become cold quick. The rain the village would freeze into snow and pile on the streets. Happened every year, no doubt it would happen again.

Leaning against the tree, Tobi sighed and stretched his arms out like a lazy cat. At this, Deidara sneered, stealing a glance towards his babysitter from his book. The other had no idea what consequences would come for not paying attention.

"Neh, Deidara, can I see what you're drawing?"

...

"Deidara?"

Tobi straightened up and looked over his shoulder, immediately noticing something was missing from this scene.

* * *

Popping out of a bush, Deidara smiled mischievously from his hiding spot. Wearily, he made sure nobody had followed him before stumbling out of the bush and started to brush off the leaves and dirt off his cloak.

"Stupid. I'm not even a ninja and he can't watch me," The blonde smirked and laughed a little to himself. Turning back to the bush, he retrieved his things and happily strolled through the forest, enjoying the feeling of freedom.

_Some babysitter..._Deidara strode with a smug look, a tiny little hop in his step.

Fresh air was far different from the stuffy and humid air inside the tower. Especially in the workshop, it was a little heavy since there was so much wood debris floating in the oxygen. The child made an effort to stay away from tools and whatnot, since the air around them was often filled with wood dust. Not that he didn't want touch them, but the dust managed to keep him away. It probably wasn't a bother for Sasori, who probably didn't possess lungs. However, it was because of that that Deidara was pretty sure that the puppeteer was unaware that the place was so...hard on the chest...

Oh well, he was here now and with more room than that little corner he was given. Deidara didn't know what the hell Sasori expected from giving him such little space. Kids could not simply live like that, and the Iwa child himself certainly couldn't.

"Oink! Grrr..."

Deidara turned and froze, eyes locked on the animal before him.

An angry boar stomped the ground and huffed out of its nostrils, pawing at the dirt with its sharp hooves. Boars were often hunted in Iwa, so very few were as bold as to challenge a human. However, here in Ame...the blonde could tell things were quite different. Not only that but boars usually never lived long enough to get to this size, this was probably the largest boar Deidara has ever seen in his life.

Facing the gigantic boar, the child sized it up. It came up to about his shoulder, but the pure bulk of it told the boy that it had plenty of muscle built up from the summer.

Having survived as much as he did since the beginning of this fanfiction, he wasn't about to get killed by a pig.

Slowly, Deidara slipped the book and stuff into his cloak. Gulping, he started to steadily back away, careful to make as little sound as possible.

"Nice piggy..," He spoke softly, trying to sooth the anger only to be met with an angry snort from the hog.

Flinching at the sound, it didn't take a genius to figure out that was a bad move. The boar stomped the ground and emitted its battle cry, charging straight on towards Deidara. Unable to say anything else, the child shrieked as he darted for his life; tears welling up at the corners of his eyes.

On instinct, Deidara sought out safety and made his way up a tree. Resting on a thick branch, the boy grasped the tree trunk like a life line, gazing down at his pursuer. Eyes wide, he heaved in relief as the boar simply circled the trunk, head tilted upwards towards him. Growling and grunting, the hog scraped the tree with its hoof. Deidara crouched and leaned down, smiling a bit as he saw the pig's frustration.

Unexpectedly, the boar jumped, snapping at Deidara who quickly coiled back, losing his balance as a result, he stumbled before regaining his footing on the branch. The child felt his heart beat quickly at the mild shock.

Looking back down, the boar continued to circle the tree, looking for ways to get at the intruder in its territory.

_This isn't good..._He bit his lip nervously. Looking around, jumping from branch to branch sounded like a good course of action.

"Guess I can't stick around." Getting back up, he turned in the opposite direction and sprung towards the next branch. Mid-jump, Deidara felt something slip from his cloak, catching his attention. There were only two things in his cloak right now.

_My book!_

Landing on the branch, the boy twirled on his feet. Scanning the ground, the turquoise colour of the drawing book was hard to spot in the green grass but it eventually was spied out right at the midway between the last tree and the one Deidara was currently perching on.

"Dammit." He swore before visibly coiling at the word. As a child, he was taught that words like those were bad and more commonly known to him as bad words in general. By now, words like that were taboo to him, and it scared him a little that he spoke it without even thinking. Nobody's here to hear it so...

Deidara prepared to retrieve his possession but thought twice as the dreaded hog approached. Sniffing the ground, the blond watched in anticipation as the animal getting close to the book. Smelling Deidara's scent on the book, it grunted and nudged the object. Sniffing all over it, the boar seemed to recognize it wasn't alive and moved on to sniffing about the area.

The child shifted on his feet, aware of the risk of getting what was rightfully his own. If only the stupid pig would move somewhere else, than maybe the subordinate would be able to scoop it up quickly without drawing any immediate attention.

Leaves rustled nearby, accompanied by the sound of flapping wings as birds fled the scene. Deidara noticed as the hog immediately perked up, sniffing the air in the same direction.

"Deidara! Hey! Deidara!"

"Tobi?" Said child whispered to himself. Looking back, the pig scraped at the ground again and started to slowly approach the second intruder, distancing itself from the book.

_Perfect!_ His mouth curled into an excited smile. Carefully, he got ready to get it, weary of the sow's movements and how much distance was good enough. Mentally, he calculated the distance between the book and the boar, waiting for the right moment to retrieve his book.

_Just a little further..._

His breath slowed as the hog walked a few more inches away from the book. It was time.

Mustering up the guts to take the risk, Deidara leaped down and lunged for the book. Crunching grass quickly caught the boar's attention, turning and charging straight on, a merciless glint in its black eye.

The boy bit his lip and grabbed the book and pencil, immediately retreating from the clearing. Boar on his tail yet again, it snapped and snarled at him, showing off its large tusks. Running in the opposite direction of Tobi, Deidara didn't expect it when he crashed into something. Next thing he knew, he was sitting on his bum.

"Agh...what the?" The boy blinked a couple of times and looked up.

_Tobi?_

"Deidara-chan! Where did you go?! I was looking for you!" The masked man spoke in his usual go-happy voice.

"B-but...you were...you weren't here!" Deidara stuttered.

"What do you mean I wasn't here?"

The boy opened his mouth to reply but was quickly interrupted as the sound of approaching hoof-steps caught his attention. Low grunting caused the hairs on the back of the child's neck to stand on end as he was reminded of his situation. Springing up, he hid behind Tobi.

"Eh?" Tobi said puzzlingly.

The boar didn't delay, coming into sight a fraction of a second later. A evil glint in its eye, it charged straight on towards the two. Deidara held on to his babysitters torso, bracing for impact.

"Oh look! It's a **pig**." Tobi's voice promptly became low, causing the pig to slide to halt once both animal and human made eye contact.

Feeling no impact at all, the child blinked and looked over, surprised to see that the boar pressing itself against the ground in submission, tiny whimpers coming out of its mouth. A few seconds passed before the hog got up and turned away shamefully, going back in the direction of the clearing where the boy first found it.

"Hahaha! Wow, that actually kind of scared me for a moment! Turned out piggy wasn't so bad after all, eh Deidara?"

"..."

Seeing no response, Tobi cocked his head and chuckled. Giving another glance around, he perked, noticing something in the grass.

"Oh ho! What's this?"

_Yeah, just shove it my face why don'tcha..._The blonde huffed, face red with embarrassment.

"Cute drawing!"

Deidara's head turned at neck-breaking speed. Eyes grew to the size of dinner plates at the sight of the masked man flipping through his new sketch book carelessly. On impulse, the child darted forward and aggressively tried to take back what was his, only to fail as Tobi dodged with ease, pulling the item out of the boy's reach.

Growling frustratedly, Deidara continued to swipe and lunge for it, failing horribly each time as the other nonchalantly continued to flip through his private sketches. The longer it went on, the worse the dreaded feeling in the child's chest felt, the feeling of invaded privacy.

"Give it back!"

Tobi didn't even spare a second look as he cockily put a hand on his hip while admiring another one of the pages in the book.

"Why should I? I'm just a dumbsubordinate so you shouldn't have any trouble taking it from me." He teased and waved his hand pettily, hitting a nerve.

"Don't look!"

The subordinate tapped his chin in interest. "You sure draw a lot of birds..."

"Tobi!"

Met with disregard, Deidara felt his anger boil. Those drawings were his own and rather private, considering how bad his own handwriting looked. Sketches to him weren't the same as his sculptures, for doing artwork in a 2d medium were worlds away from molding any substance into a desired shape.

This was taking too long.

Meanwhile, Tobi took a last look at the page filled up with pictures of what he assumed to be squirrels. Quite a few were scribbled out while others seemed to have a lot of unnecessary detail added. One 'squirrel' had scribbles for fur and another had black streaks drawn on its back and a small tail. Oh wait, that's a chipmunk.

Ready to turn to the next page, the masked man took notice as the attempts to take back the book seemed to cease. If anything, Deidara probably gave up and was probably waiting politely for him to give it back. He expected as much, but he had to admit the kid was rather brave for challenging someone like himself. Subordinate or not, the child seemed to think little of Tobi and even labelled him as 'dumb'.

_Not the best approach to his situation. Makes me wonder how Sasori didn't kill the kid already. Well, it's only a matter of time before the nail that sticks up gets hammered down._

Flipping the page, Tobi was immediately silent as he stared at the drawing. Captivated with the page, he failed to notice as his green scarf gradually got tighter around his neck. Up until it was nearly too late to react.

Suddenly, a strong tug yanked at Tobi's neck while he was off guard, slamming him into the hard grassy earth with surprising ferocity. Hand shooting up to his neck, Tobi gasped for air while the book fell out of his hand, flipping closed a few inches away.

"Wah! Hey!"

Deidara came into sight over him, shooting a glare at him before walking over to where his book fell.

"No fair! No fair! You can't do that! No scarf-yanking!" Tobi flailed on the ground.

Leaning down to retrieve his belongings, the child spoke, "You're bigger than me so it is_ fair_."

Tobi stopped flailing. Sitting up, he thought about the response and turned to the boy, watching as he dusted off his sketch book, "But cheating is bad, do you want to be bad?"

A silence fell, only helping the masked-man's curiosity grow. Deidara stared at his book, a blank look on his features as he opened it just a crack to glance inside and check for any damages. Seconds passed before he closed the book, looking upwards.

"Cheating isn't bad, it's just another way to win."

The other cocked his head, "Really?"

"It's just nobody likes it, that's why its against the rules."

Against the rules huh? A devious smirk curled up under Tobi's mask. Interesting point, but not always the most agreeable. Maybe this squirt had a chance at life as a criminal after all.


	18. Favorite Phrase: Secret

**Favorite Phrase: "Secret"**

"Hey, Deidara! Deidara!"

The boy perked up, visible eye squinted irritably that his attentions were brought away from his current activity. Putting down his pencil, he glanced up at his babysitter. Sitting under the tree for shade, squinting helped when it was really sunny.

"What?"

Tobi chuckled and started to fish his pockets, pulling out a grey and sticky looking substance from his clothes. The child's eyes followed the mass of grey blankly as it was thrown and caught in the air repeatedly, until eyes finally widened.

"When did you..."

"Want to play a game Deidara? I swiped the pouch!"

* * *

_At least three months, it takes at least three months for it to mature._

Sasori hastily made his way down the muddy and humid street. Passing a man huddled in the corner of an alley, the man quickly looked away, seemingly desperate as to not meet the puppeteers gaze. The gesture hadn't even caught the others attention, for the action was so common.

Approaching a pit in the ground, the redhead paused and glared past the white cloth draped from his rice hat. A trash pit, filled with green and black plastic bags, wrappers and wasted food. Some flies were visible buzzing over the pit, a probable breeding ground for the pests.

"Tch. A dead end," He murmured to himself frustratedly. He knew no regular self-respecting ninja would hang out near a trash pit, even someone like Tobi, whom Sasori believed had little if any self-respect at all.

Sasori hated this. Having usually stuck to the familiar streets of Ame, straying from them had only caused the puppeteer to get lost. Had he known that a time like this would come, surely he would've familiarized himself with he structure of the village beforehand. Sasori was easily beginning to regret pulling Deidara off the road. If the redhead had decided pass the child and leave him for dead, he would've saved himself a heck lot of trouble.

_Guess I'll try north._ The ex-suna ninja turned swiftly and hurried back the way he came. This village was practically a labyrinth with the tall skyscrapers serving as walls that obscured much of the street ahead. Knowing the danger of trying to scale large metallic objects when drenched in water, Sasori's options were limited.

* * *

_BOOM_

"WAAH!" Tobi squealed sarcastically, flailing his arms in the air as a bomb exploded near his foot. Stumbling back, the masked man flattened himself against a tree.

Deidara giggled at the comedic scene, hand still up in his signature seal. Charred and burnt patches were everywhere surrounding Tobi. Many were in the grass and a few traps in the trees that the child set up for their little "game". It was a fun game, simple too. Deidara didn't know how but Tobi had known about his hand mouths and his ability to blow things to bits. The idea that he knew scared him a bit but as things went on, Deidara surprisingly felt more relaxed to know that he wouldn't have to hide it. Though he did still question how the masked-ninja knew, the only response he would get was "it's a secret!".

On to the game. Being only seven, Deidara knew little about what was normal and what wasn't. When Tobi proposed the idea that Deidara would try and blow him up using his sculptures, the child didn't think otherwise but to get excited about having a live target to aim at. In order to win, all the blonde had to do was successfully hit the other with his bombs.

It was a fun game, fun for Deidara at least.

"Don't you think that was a little close!?" Tobi exclaimed in between shocked gasps.

The child glared, unamused. His fun was interrupted and the blonde didn't like the idea of any complaints while he played, "You made the game stupid. Katsu."

_BOOM_

The Akatsuki subordinate emerged from the dust cloud, flying through the air before smashing his masked face into the ground. Laying there like a pancake earned a delightful giggle from the boy, who thought little of others well-being.

"Ow...ow...ow..," Tobi slowly and humorously got up from his position, falling back on his back and emitting a loud sigh, "Come on Deidara-chan! Enough play for today!"

"No!"

_BOOM_

* * *

"WAH!"

The boar tilted its snout towards the sky, sniffing a scent off the breeze. In its many years of living in this part of the woods, not once had he met a creature like that. It's eye was red and its face was orange and swirled. Animals like that often steered clear of his territory, passing by out in the open where the sow knew was safe from its wrath. However, that one was different.

Its scent was still here, still in its territory. However, no longer did the hog think of chasing it out for fear of its own life. Hopefully, the intruder would leave it in peace.

Wood.

For some reason, it would smelled wood in the wind. It was strange, smelled slightly like wood and bit like a mammal, certainly had a lively tinge to it. Fur on its spine pricked up slightly at the scent of something foul and metallic, like poison.

Another intruder, and it was approaching fast.

Acting upon instinct, the boar immediately interpreted it as danger and looked around wearily. Heart rate increasing, it spun around before squealing loudly as a flash of black and red passed a few inches from its snout. Backing away shakily, the hog continued to squeal and thrash about, retreating into the deep forest.

* * *

_BOOM_

"AIIIEEEEE!"

Deidara continued to watch in intense amusement as Tobi dodged his explosions like a cat running through a mine field. It hadn't occurred to the child that the game had gone on for an unusually long time. Not once did Tobi actually get hit and the boy was having too much fun to notice that his clothes were never marked with a burn. Instead, the long sleeve top and black pants were covered in dirt, not ash.

"Came up with his own game. I just follow what he says!" Deidara stated proudly to himself. He felt so high and mighty, something he hadn't felt in a while. The days leading up to this one were unfamiliar and stressed. The idea of being pursued and having to deal with his new body parts and this weird Akatsuki group had overwhelmed him. The feeling of being in control along with superiority felt fresh and exciting. Even if it was just a rank above Tobi, who seemed to be highly looked down upon by Sasori.

_It felt good._

A sudden wetness and draft under his cloak sent shivers up his spine. Dropping the clay, Deidara tilted his head downwards to see something pushing against his cloak. Of all times to be awake, why did it have to be now? His chest mouth normally never bothered the blonde, asleep during the day and only yawning in the morning before continuing to stay behaved and sleep. It was the middle of the day dammit, what did it want?

Tobi leaned against a tree, sliding down into a sitting position as he heaved tiredly. His body visibly tensed as seconds passed without a single explosion detonating. Quietly, the masked man waited for the next bomb, but it didn't come.

Looking over to the large boulder Deidara sat upon, he cocked his head slightly. The boy had removed his cloak, messily thrown somewhere beside him, he wore nothing over his chest to reveal a large mouth with pointed teeth. Deidara seemed occupied with something, looking to have forgotten about the game.

"Hey! Deidara! What are you doing!?" Tobi called.

"Nothing!" The child replied quickly.

_Doesn't look like it._ The masked-man's eyes narrowed suspiciously.

Deidara grumbled, this mouth was being annoying. It was disgusting enough that it was drooling buckets but it annoyed him more that it was capable of more noise than the other two. Louder and deeper in sound, Deidara missed the days when he didn't have three extra orifices on his body.

_Maybe it needs to breath..._

Deciding to leave it this way for a while, the child would allow Tobi a small break. Grabbing the clay his babysitter gave him again, Deidara blinked in surprise to see a lack of reaction from his hand mouth. Seemingly limp, it felt weird to have loose tongues hanging from his palms like a parasite twin. The moment the clay was brought within a few inches of himself, Deidara froze as his mouth acted separately from his commands, tongue reaching out towards the ball of earth in his hand.

"It wants clay?" He murmured to himself.

Staring at his chest, Deidara made a puzzled expression as he noticed some marks around his third mouth. Four swirls and net-like lines had suddenly appeared around it, looking similar to a seal of some sorts. It was strange, for Deidara was sure he would've knew if they were there before. The boy didn't remember getting a tattoo and he didn't plan on it, so the sudden appearance of the seal scared him.

"Well...it wants clay and if that's going to get it shut up..," Deidara sighed and started to tear off a chunk small enough to chew for his chest mouth from the original lump of clay.

Slowly, the boy handed the chunk of clay to his chest mouth, only to pause when someone screamed.

"**TOBI! GET THAT CLAY AWAY FROM HIM!"**

* * *

_Seconds earlier..._

Sasori raced through the forest, having discarded his rice hat, it made following footprints easier when he didn't have a lines of white cloth obstructing his vision. Amegakure was a labyrinth made of mazes of streets and sewage pipes, horrible living conditions left over from the previous war times. Somehow though, Sasori had made it out of the village and now had a pretty good idea of where Tobi and the brat would've gone.

Much of the land around Amegakure was too dangerous for any casual citizen to stroll through. Old traps that lived through decades along with new ones would've been a sure sign to any person that they should not be hanging around. Only towards the north were the forests rather clear of any kind of human disturbance. No history of battle was ever recorded on the north outskirts of Ame so the place was a haven for animals and plants to live. Recently, the area was a common place to train for the Akatsuki do they happen to stick around Pein's tower. Though it wasn't used regularly, it was ideal compared to the muddy and humid streets of the hidden rain as well as the trap ridden woodlands of the East. South and West only lead towards the desert and if extended, Sunagakure.

This area was particularly peaceful, and Sasori had already found the first signs of activity around here. Tracking wasn't his specialty but he was good enough at it that Sasori could easily get to Deidara, who was currently in an grave situation unknown to even himself.

_It wasn't a healing period like I first thought. When the brat told me that his hands had been sleeping, I assumed that due to the bodily injuries, the mouths would've rested more often to heal. I thought this was confirmed when I saw the organ charts from the file with the added mouths but that wasn't the whole story..._

Sasori didn't even spare a glance as he rushed past a large hog, which squealed like a piglet in surprise. No ordinary animal posed even the smallest threat to him or his body, so he had no reason to even look at it.

_From what I read, the mouths are parasitic organisms. Having a soft shell, if summoned outside of the body it would dry up and die within minutes. The practice in Iwagakure in the second shinobi world war involved creating openings into the blood stream for the parasite to enter the body. This involved cutting the hands and using the blood as a sacrifice to transfer the summoning animal. Naturally, once it was summoned, the animal would have entered the body and settle within the host to await full maturity. However..._

_According to the papers, the practice to aid shinobi in battle was put to an end due to the high risk of death from hosts. This peace of information had worried Sasori a bit, knowing that if these subjects were grown men and women, than the chance of a child surviving was near non-existent._

_Once inside the body, the both parasites would join up in the chest cavity after travelling the arteries towards the heart. The skin of the organism secretes a liquid that paralyze's the host in order to make settling easier. Being a parasite, it feeds on the host's chakra in order to mature and grow, causing it to reach the next stage of its life within the first few seconds._

_This stage involves forcing its entry into the chest cavity and down into the arms, causing massive internal bleeding and for most, death. However..._

_During the second shinobi world war, Iwagakure used suicide bombings to attack opposing nations. Iwagakure shinobi sometimes possess a chakra known as Explosive Nature. This parasite only helped with enhance their military strength but only if the host manages to survive. Even then, most ninja didn't make it to its final of stage of maturity..._

_BOOM_

Sasori faltered and looked up in alarm, wondering if he was too late but Tobi's sarcastic shriek assured him things were fine...at the moment.

_Normally, it would take only two months for it to mature but this one took its time... I haven't seen the marks yet but there's a good chance they should appear soon. Even then, as long as it doesn't have anything to detonate itself with...the brat shouldn't..._

Emerging from the thick bush into the clearing, Sasori whipped his head towards Deidara who sat casually on the rock, about to give his chest mouth some clay. Upon the sight of swirl marks and seal symbols, the redhead was thankful that he was able to speak instead of just stare in shock.

_"**TOBI! GET THAT CLAY AWAY FROM HIM!"**_

Deidara's eye was caught as a familiar red-haired Akatsuki appeared into view. His expression seemed stressed, a face that the child had never seen before. If anything, he wondered what his caretaker was even here for, since Sasori was the one who threw him out in the first place.

"Danna?"

_SMACK_

The next thing he knew, the clay in his hands was knocked away. Deidara flinched, head dodging backwards into something soft. Glancing up, his eyes widened as the sight of Tobi standing over him, blocking the sun with a strangely serious look for a person who wore a mask.

_Wha?_

"Tobi," Sasori approached the two, calmer now that the clay was a distance away from the child. His gaze settled on the blonde, but mainly the drooling chest mouth. It seemed to frown, displeased that it didn't get what it wanted.

Deidara sat silently. Though he did want to speak out, ask why his babysitter had to be so forceful when he could have just asked instead of smacking his hand. Glancing at his slightly reddened hand, the child barely teared up as the bruise throbbed. Especially since his hand mouths were sensitive, it felt like he was being smacked in the cheek.

"I'll need him knocked out."

_Knocked out?!_ "Eh!? Why-

_THWACK_

* * *

Eyes pried themselves open. His body ached slightly but meant little compared to the pain that nailed at the back of his head. Focus tightening, the child stiffened in attempt to relieve himself from the ache for a little while.

His mouth opened just a slight bit.

"Morning, again."

The voice woke him up, blinking a couple of times in surprise before glancing upwards at Sasori with a blank look. The redhead stood near the bed, eyebrow raised curiously at Deidara.

"Hm?"

The puppeteer stared skeptically, watching as the kid recklessly sat up, only to wince in pain and lie right back down. Bandages were wrapped around his chest, decorated in little red dots, indicating some serious bleeding. Sasori expected that kind of reaction, luckily he had plenty of extra just in case the brat got too rough with his bandages.

"Careful, the stitches are still fresh."

Deidara looked at him square in the eye, a glint of fear was visible, "St-stiches!?..."

"I had Tobi knock you out so that you wouldn't complain when I'd have you stitched up. That mouth on your chest is troublesome, so it'd be best for all of us if it shut up...for good."

Deidara opened his mouth to reply but stopped himself. It was probably better off if he didn't complain, besides, surely Sasori had a good reason right? Scanning the room around him, it took the boy a while to realize it was the redhead's room.

It looked different from before, puppets no longer lay scattered on the floor and the desk was neatly organized. No longer did the room smell of wood dust, but smelled much like the rest of Pein's tower, wet and humid.

It looked so empty.

"Get some rest, we're leaving tomorrow."

"Why are we leaving so soon?"

Sasori didn't reply for a few seconds, faced away from the boy, he looked busy with something on a shelf. It took him a while, but eventually, he answered.

"Winter's coming. It gets too cold here so we're moving down south with Orochimaru. No point in you getting a cold or flu."

"Oh..," Deidara fiddled mindlessly with his bandages, having not heard the extra name mentioned. He wondered what it looked like beneath. With a little thought, he decided it probably looked disgusting.

"I'll explain more later," Sasori muttered, mind elsewhere. Though it was true that moving south was probably a better idea due to the snowfall, there was another reason.

* * *

_The small body slumped towards the rocky ground. Sasori averted his gaze, refusing to look at the child whom he had just ordered to be knocked out. For some reason, he really just didn't want to look, like if he did, he'd feel some strange guilt or something. Instead, he focused his attention on Tobi, slight anger on his wooden face._

_"Ha~! Good timing Sasori! If it weren't for you, poor little Deidara would've blown up! Phew!" Tobi sarcastically wiped sweat from his forehead, despite the fact that he wore a mask._

_The happy go-lucky tone of voice didn't fool him, expression failing to fade._

_"Tobi."_

_"Hm?"_

_Sasori's expression darkened, struggling to keep a passive face as his rage continued to boil over._

_He hated that tone of voice, that mocking tone that the masked-man so often used with the members of Akatsuki. The redhead wasn't the only one of course, others also showed irritation whenever Tobi decided to speak. The subordinate's constant cowardice and idiocy had lead many of conclude that he was harmless and therefore, tolerated his behaviour, however..._

_What Tobi decided to do was anything but harmless._

_Wind blew autumn leaves into the air as a silence fell the between the two. Even as rage continued to build, Tobi kept up his facade, faking cluelessness._

_"You knew, how did you know that he needed clay? I've been with the brat for far longer and even I didn't know about the organism's choice of detonation material."_

_"Oh Sasori! You're being too serious!" Tobi laughed, "I didn't know about that! I just happened to find a pouch in your room! When I was babysitting him, I thought he'd like to play with it so I brought it out! It was all a big mistake! You misunderstand!"_

_"As if!"_

_"Look! Let's just ignore that! All that matters is that Deidara's okay right? And it was all thanks to you!" The masked-man made a thumbs up._

_"**Tobi, I swear-**"_

_"Hey! Hey!" The subordinate put up his hands in defence, "You know, there are bigger things you should worry about! Now that he's not blown to pieces, I think you should go make sure he doesn't blow himself to pieces later!"_

_Sasori glared, but even then, Tobi was quite right. His anger faded, trying to focus attentions elsewhere other than the masked-ninja. He came here for a reason, and lashing out at Tobi wouldn't get him anywhere. After all, he didn't want to have to pay more for making Kakuzu wait._

_Slowly, the puppeteer walked over and knelt next to the child. Picking him up bridal style, he made sure that he was careful. A good look at the mouths indicated that if the host lost consciousness, so would it. Both consciences seemed connected somehow, though separate a the same time._

_"I hit him pretty hard..," Tobi whimpered awkwardly, "Maybe you should have Kakuzu check that too..."_

_On top of stitching, a check up on the cranium? Sasori glared at the masked man, irritated beyond belief, "Thanks to you, Kakuzu's gonna drain my wallet..."_

* * *

"One more thing."

"Yeah danna?"

"Don't ask me to buy anything."


	19. New Mission!

**New Mission!**

"So Orochimaru didn't arrive?" Konan spoke again.

The opening in the building darkened as the clouds began to become thicker, droplets multiplying in number in order to pound heavily against the roof. Cables hung just out of reach, draping from the pipes that snaked their way around the flooring and walls. Near the ledge, Hiruko nodded.

"We agreed to meet as so we could advance through the land of Earth with little trouble, but it seems that didn't work out too well."

Konan stood for a moment, then closed her eyes in acceptance. Even with Sasori keeping a close watch, Orochimaru wasn't so easy to keep contained. Especially with the child on their hands now, Sasori would have brought a whole new weight to carry onto himself. Be it not for the boy's jutsu, he could be considered a liability and brought under the knife regardless of what the puppeteer had to say. For now though, Sasori would require some assistance if it meant keeping Orochimaru in the ropes. She'd be sure to inform Pein later on.

"And the mission?"

"It turned out successful. I wouldn't know if there were survivors..," Sasori spoke monotonously.

A flock of birds retreated from the heavy rain, their cries echoing around the room. "Did you find anything worth your time there?"

"No. Nothing at all."

"I see," Konan stepped forward, "Then I will assign you your new mission."

"Zetsu checked on Iwagakure to determine its status. Mass construction has taken place. To keep up appearances, they haven't changed their border guard and the Daimyo have continued to leave things to their Kage. Leader has taken interest in the jutsu that the child possesses, and would like to have the scroll retrieved for further use. I'd expect you send your spy for it?"

"Unfortunately, it won't be that easy," Sasori said.

The woman blinked, "Oh?"

"I check on the status of my subordinates regularly. I tried to get in contact with the one in Iwagakure but there was no connection. I can only assume he's dead or the jutsu had been broken. The latter is unlikely. If you want the scroll, then I'd have to send for another spy, but doing that is dangerous at the moment."

"Then retrieve it yourself. Orochimaru should find the activity exciting, since you two don't do much to begin with."

"The papers didn't contain anything on its location. How am I supposed to find it?" Sasori snapped frustratedly.

"That's where the child comes in then. He should know where it is, since he obtained it himself. I'm only here to assign you your mission, not spoon feed you. If your spy isn't at your beck and call, perhaps it's time to get up and do it yourself."

The two met gazes, Hiruko glaring straight into his superior's eye. Finally, he let up. "Tch...fine then."

A mass of paper flew into the room, engulfing Konan on the spot. "After you're done, Leader will have Orochimaru separated for a while and keep him occupied. He thinks you may need some to time alone to get accustomed to your long-term assignment."

"I welcome that."

She lifted into the air, white wings now visible among the mess of sheets that surrounded her being. A stack of paper unfurled from her cheek, dropping into the air to join the rest that spun below her torso. It was no wonder that the people here would think of her as an angel; at a distance the sheets became feathers that would gather to create wings.

The flurry tightened their spiral, enveloping the woman in a white cocoon before finally bursting in a shower, abandoning their once organized form into a scattered mess on the floor. Sasori remained, staring out into the skyscrapers that resisted the downwards pour of rain. He hadn't predicted he'd put Deidara's life in danger so soon.

* * *

"Huh? Me?" The child pointed to himself.

Both Akatsuki rested inside the room, fixing their gaze upon the blond. The snake sat in silence while Hiruko made a warning glare at Tobi. The subordinate jumped at this, holding up both hands in surrender, "Okay! Okay! I'll leave!"

With a woosh, he dashed down the hall, leaving the child to stare obliviously, clay pouch in hand. Without a warning, a chakra thread slammed the door closed. Deidara stiffened, risking a look over his shoulder. The other cackled at the reaction, a tiny smile making its way onto his pale white face.

"We were just discussing our new mission and we..," He paused just as Orochimaru grumbled, "...agreed that you should come with us."

The child advanced towards his master, giving a vigilant look at the snake, "What do you want me to do?"

"If you remember, we'd like you to show us where the jutsu those mouths came from is."

Deidara searched his memory, confirming with himself before answering, "Uh...yeah, I remember."

"Good, then you'll be useful to us."

Orochimaru coughed, "Are you sure? Do you remember the exact route?"

A shadow came over the man's features, sending a wave of discomfort into the child. This guy, he wasn't like other people. Onoki sent off a vibe of authority much like the Akatsuki leader had, their very presence pushing down on others until they were kneeling on the ground before them. Kakuzu was somewhat different. Being near him felt as if he were standing next to a cornered beast, uncertainty plaguing every second near him. Sasori was alright, up to a point. As long the redhead was content, the child had no need to fear. However, Orochimaru...

That feeling when left in the dark with no sense of ones surroundings, the very floor crawling with creatures that dwelled in the pitch-black, a pair of eyes fading in and out of sight, constantly observing. As if a tight wire was coiled around his body, holding him tight in wait of whatever was out there ready to pounce. Even the slightest movement would cut you, the slightest sound would kill you. Simply left in apprehension that if you did anything, than it would get you.

That's what it felt like.

Taking notice of the prolonged silence, Sasori cut in, "I doubt he'd forget something like that. Besides, it's not like he'll be glued to you the entire mission. That's my job."

"To kiss up to Leader? I guess it really is the only way you're even getting by isn't it?" Orochimaru sneered.

"Kiss up?" Sasori huffed, "I'd say that myself about you. Since you haven't done anything since you joined this organization. What's wrong?"

Deidara considered the two, noticing the thick air that passed between them. From what it looked like, neither had very good opinions of each other. If anything, the puppeteer looked as if he were ready to shove the other Akatsuki right out of his room. It felt like that time when they had ran into Kakuzu in the hall, that suffocating feeling, standing right in the middle of a battlefield.

"Oh nothing's wrong, just observing is all," The snake made a toothy grin. He shifted his gaze towards the shortest in the room. "Back to you. Looks like Sasori's confident you know your stuff. I'll let you live," A pale finger was raised in his direction, "But let me warn you again, get in my way and I won't hesitate to slice you up."

"Y-yes..," Deidara made a hasty nod. Side stepping closer to the puppeteer, the child clung to Hiruko's cloak, yanking slightly at the empty sleeve that dragged from the side of the shell. For a moment, the child panicked but realized quickly that Hiruko was present. Sasori was here, just not in view.

"Well then, we should get going. It's rather foul-smelling in here at the moment anyways."

Orochimaru stood from the seat, eager to get to the door to let himself out. Once the other had gone, the child allowed himself to catch his breath. The atmosphere seemed to calm, returning to the still air that was so common inside the room. No longer thick with wood-dust, Deidara had begun to breathe easier but still found himself tense.

The large puppet shifted from his spot, swinging his head around to his subordinate. "Get ready; we'll be going in an hour."

Deidara blinked, "We're not going tomorrow? Or tonight? Right now?"

"I've been lenient with this so far but I'll tell you right now, I don't like to wait or make people wait, the sooner the better. Your arm is healed and your mouths are working fine. We're cancelling plans to head south; instead we'll be going north towards your home. No problems?"

The child straightened and shook his head dutifully, "No problems!"

"Good. That's what I like to hear."

_POOF_

The cloud cleared, revealing Sasori in his more honest form.

"I'm already prepared. It's just you and my partner."

Deidara cocked his head, already knelt by the bed to gather up clay to fill his pouch, "Why were you inside Hiruko?"

The puppeteer hesitated with the question, refusing to make eye contact with the boy. "I just don't want him to see me this way. People aren't supposed to see my body."

"But...you're wearing clothes."

"No, I mean my identity. Who I am. That's what Orochimaru's not supposed to see, and neither are you for that matter."

Clay was torn from the large lump, dropped into the pouch that slowly filled with the substance. His palmmouths began to water, salivating at the very scent or touch of clay, hovering over the bag like a hawk. The child gave his master a look over, furrowing his eyebrows in puzzlement.

"I think danna looks okay. Just brush your hair a little and look happier."

Sasori snickered, "You don't get it. I'm perfectly happy this way. It's less about how I look than it is Hiruko's purpose. The puppet is supposed to protect me, so naturally, I can't have people look at the real me."

"You don't trust Orochimaru?"

The redhead's face fell, tensing, "No. I don't."

"Oh, well..," The child turned his attentions to a lump in the corner, "You gonna finish that puppet?"

Sasori faced the corner, eyeing the body half-sliced up in the corner. Blood pooled from its insides, entrails flooding out of the metal bucket placed nearby. A gaping hole was neatly cut into the stomach, flaps of skin pinned down with needles into the surrounding area peeled in a diamond shape. The ribs hadn't been dealt with yet, pristine and white in contrast to the blood that coated the rest of the organs and cavern within the torso. The stomach had to be done away with quickly after all. Once a person was dead, the first things that would rot would be their stomach. Acids would pour into the body and eat away at the flesh. Sasori couldn't have that, so he removed the stomach and intestines first thing.

"I'll finish it after we're done."

"But it's stinky!" Deidara whined, pinching his nose in disgust.

* * *

A storm conjured up in the distance, making the child rather glad that they had left when they did. It looked like a thunder storm, deep smoky clouds rolled into the horizon, creating a dark grey line just below the sky. The trees seemed to stand in an army just behind the land, patches of grass poked out from the muddy floor, a calm brown sea only disturbed by the winding gravel road.

A nudge pushed him forward. Whipping his head behind him, a segmented tail gently shoved him up the road to follow Orochimaru. Hiruko had stopped briefly to pull the boy along, seemingly distracted by the view. Letting up, Deidara let himself be dragged into Sasori's direction.

"Keep up." The puppeteer muttered, tail disappearing into his cloak.

Deidara lingered, finally following in suite to catch up with the others. He slowed nearby Orochimaru, quickly clinging to the redhead's side while spying on the snake out of the corner of his eye.

The day dragged on. Observations of the two had yielded interesting yet rather useless information on the child's part. He hadn't really taken them into account before, but now, he was aware of the fact that each member of the Akatsuki wore rings. Not on the ring finger where it was supposed to be, but on different fingers. Sasori wore his on his thumb, a rather odd place to put it while Orochimaru wore his on his pinky. The child couldn't remember on which finger but he was quite sure he saw rings on each of the other members as well. Not only that, but each member wore different shade of nail polish, something Deidara thought odd of not only men, but S-rank ninja in particular.

Deidara eyed the slate blue ring on the snake's finger, barely noticing as the swaying of his arm ceased as well as the footsteps along the dirt path. Only when the blond walked into a hard surface was he torn from his little world, realizing in a snap what he had just done. A still silence only made his apprehension grow, stumbling backwards, head tilted upwards in fear of what Orochimaru would do. It didn't take long for the vibe to reach Sasori, who looked over in mild curiosity.

"_You_..."

Orochimaru spun on the spot, arm extended in the child's direction as four snakes erupted from his sleeve. Deidara leaped off the ground, doing a flip to narrowly dodge the snakes before skidding to a halt on the ground. Looking up, the child shifted his weight to the left, dodging two snakes and ducking under the third. Something coiled around his leg, dragging the boy to the ground with a yelp. The shadow snake tightened around his ankle, hauling its prey in. Deidara cried out in fear, hands scraping against the ground.

"**_Brat_**!" Orochimaru hissed, winding his other arm back to send out more snakes.

_CLACK..._

_CLACK..._

_CLACK..._

_CLACK.._

The snake separated in two, dust accumulating after the tail that whipped out across the field. Straightening, it jerked upwards, beheading the shadow snakes just as they were about to reach the child. With a loud thud, Hiruko's tail slammed the ground and dragged itself towards the other man, swiping beneath his feet only to miss.

Hiruko spun on the spot, tail paused and ready in the air as a wave of dust surrounded them, Orochimaru on equal footing. Deidara held his breath, eyes wide in terror at the scene that just unfolded. A wind tore at the space, causing their cloaks to whisk before settling.

_That was...scary..._

The child sat for a moment, finally allowing himself some peace as he made a sigh of relief, followed by tentative breaths.

Orochimaru grit his teeth, withdrawing the snake stubs into his sleeve. Straightening himself gave Sasori the sign that the fight was over, the tail relaxing and slowly slithered back into the puppet. The snake held a hand over his face, concealing his expression.

"I apologize for that," He let his hand fall, revealing a calmer expression, "I suppose I was just a little frustrated, please do forgive me."

"Hmph!" Sasori grunted and turned to his subordinate, "You got something on your leg."

Sure enough, the snake was still wrapped around his ankle. Deidara yelped in momentary fear, kicking off the reptile before it poofed into thin air. Recovering, the blond got up from his spot. Sasori approached Orochimaru, holding a brief conversation with him that ended as soon as it had started. The words were hushed, so the child was unable to understand.

Hiruko's tail seemed to replace both a sword and a hand, gesturing Deidara over to his side. Cupping the boy to his right, the puppet sheathed its tail once again. "You're staying to my right from now on."

* * *

The air became brisk, tiny clouds escaped the child's lips, vaporizing into nothingness. He held a blanket around himself, shivering slightly with his nose tucked into the covers to breathe some warmth into the sheets.

An oil lamp provided little warmth from the frigidness, a soft glow emanated from its yellow core, giving off the atmosphere of some safety. Bugs had begun to gather around the base of the lamp, however warded off by the scroll that the lamp sat on, a circle of kanji successful in keeping away any insects that may come crawling around.

Above the glow, Orochimaru sat in the grass, hair covering both eyes in a chilling scene. A pale face only visible between pitch-black curtains that matched the setting of a forest at night. The snake was still, however not sleeping. Deidara could tell he wasn't sleeping, since the occasional movement of his hand or leg.

"What's with that look?"

Deidara flinched at the voice, hiding himself beneath the covers. Orochimaru's smile grew, eyes still concealed beneath his bangs. "I didn't mean to scare you. You didn't get in my way today, don't worry about it."

Deidara didn't reply.

"Sasori just went out for a while. He'll be back soon to tell you a bed-time story and tuck you in," The snake said mockingly.

"Danna doesn't do that."

"Does he? Do you want me to tell you a story instead?"

"NO!" He exclaimed.

"Isn't that a shame?" Orochimaru made a despondent expression, "I have many stories to tell. Many of which I think a child your age would be interested in. Perhaps then you would quit making that scared face at me. I'm not so bad, promise."

The blond opened his mouth to argue but stopped himself, deciding it would be better if he not respond at all. Instead, the tiny artist burrowed into his blankets, spying at the other Akatsuki just above the fold. He narrowed his eyes, analyzing the snake with a calculating gaze.

"I'm sorry about that attack I made earlier. I was just a little frustrated. You see, I'm after a very powerful jutsu and but news came that the source has suddenly become scarce. I've been sulking these past few days over it. It's quite the collectable."

"..."

"Come on now, I don't discourage questions."

Deidara contemplated his options, peeking over his covers before finally revealing his face again, "What are you...what jutsu do you want?"

"I won't tell you exactly but it is a dojutsu, meaning it comes from the eyes," Orochimaru drew out the last syllable with a hiss, revealing his yellow pupils over the oil lamp. "The dojutsu allows its user to see chakra and copy even the most subtle movements. It's a kekkei genkai however, so obtaining it is harder than it sounds. I've been itching to get at it for a while, but in this organization I'm afraid my hands are tied."

"It copies people. So what?" Deidara spoke bluntly.

"I'm barely scratching the surface! This dojutsu grants its user many abilities. It was this very jutsu that held its clan at the top for so long, transcending beyond nearly every other clan. Their eyes allowed them to _see_."

"To see?" He repeated.

"Yes."

Deidara hummed in thought. Pushing his hand from the covers, the boy let his mouth breath, a tongue lolled from it. "I have a jutsu. Do you want it?"

"It's certainly tempting, but if your jutsu scroll goes into the hands of leader, than I have plenty of time to pursue the dojutsu and obtain yours later on. For now, I have no need for your mouths. Mouths just talk and make noise, eyes allow you to see and perceive the world around you. Compared to your jutsu, the eye jutsu I plan to obtain makes yours pale in comparison!"

A tinge of offence made Deidara shrug away from the snake, frowning at the idea. His mouths weren't so weak that they would lose to some pair of eyes. Mouths beat eyes! If he wanted to, he could use his mouths to pluck someone's eyes out and crush them to bits so they're unusable! What could eyes do? Glare you to death? There was a reason why people feared the bite more than the bark. His palmmouths jerked and slobbered over his fingers, excitement rising.

"Ah well. I should really stop talking. It's time to go to bed isn't it?"

"Danna's not back yet."

_THWACK_

Deidara fell face first into his blankets, getting a mouth-full of cloth. A familiar segmented tail hovered over him, a hunched puppet shuffling past his subordinate.

"Go to bed, brat."

* * *

**A/N(This is gonna be a long one...): Jeeze, this was a pile of work! I'm finally happy I got the editing done so I could get on with the new arc. I guess I'll explain what happened. I had the original fanfic but I wanted to give a rewrite a try so I did. After a while, I figured that the original was better but still needed some tweaks so I changed up the original a bit so it included the parts I wanted it to have but didn't include. Orochimaru was something I thought up after I finished the first arc after I discovered that Orochimaru would actually have to be Sasori's partner at this time. **

**As for other things, Ryusai and Yudachi from chapter 14 are the guys who carry in bodies to the Ame tower. They do menial tasks. I actually wanted to explain more things in Chapter 18 but I had a real struggle trying to get it in without making a giant mega-paragraph on the workings and biology of Deidara's jutsu. That would be boring and I'd feel terrible if I did that. I figured I'd just explain in the final arc which I am doing right now. It's not the final arc of the fanfic, but before I get to a timeskip. This isn't really a spoiler so I feel I can mention that.**

**I usually see portrayals of Orochimaru being this child-molester kind of guy. I never really saw him that way so I wanted to write Orochimaru in a way that was more honest to the canon. I've actually really wanted to write about Orochimaru for a while, so it's fun to really think about how his psyche works.**

**Thanks to Anniegirl132 for checking over this chapter! Please review if you'd like!**


	20. Return to Iwa

**Return to Iwa**

The boy approached a cliff side, standing for a moment to analyze the situation. Quite a ways above the trees, the gravel path faded out into a ledge that slid out from the rock, creating a thin walkway. Below here, a large grove ended abruptly, blocked off by the sudden jutting of gigantic rocks the child knew to be more cliffs. The stone stretched towards the sky, straight as an arrow that resisted the elements with determination. This was home alright.

Stepping near the ledge, Deidara barely noticed as his weight pushed some small rocks to tumble down the rock face. Wind blew constantly, sometimes forcefully but it wasn't anything he wasn't already used to. Shoes scraping gravel reached his ears, but the sound barely stirred any thought. Edging over to the thin path, Deidara didn't hesitate to step onto the platform, judging his weight with some experience as he tread across rock face, pressing his shoulder against the rough wall.

"Brat, get back here!"

Hiruko's familiar tone snapped behind him. The boy turned to face his danna, wearing an oblivious look. Sasori stood further from the edge, more careful than his partner who gazed over the view, seemingly enamored by the scenery.

"Danna?"

"It's dangerous. Get back here now!"

Obediently, the blond turned on his heel, earning a flinch from the puppeteer who held his hand up inside Hiruko stiffly, readying himself to catch his subordinate at a moment's notice. Once the child safely was away, Sasori didn't hesitate to scold him.

"Where'd you get the idea that crossing that was safe?"

Deidara cringed at the sharp tone, but continued to make a puzzled expression. Raising a finger over to the path to point, he replied, "It's this way. I know it is."

The puppet shook his head wearily, "There's a safer route I know of that goes around here. We should take that instead."

Deidara nodded hesitantly, "Okay...but, isn't it longer? The sooner the better right?"

"Hiruko can't cross such weak ground. It would break the floor and fall," He gazed upwards towards the higher rocks. "Even if we walked on the wall, it would be too weak to support us. It's not like walking on water, and you in particular can't do it at all for a matter of fact."

"Then get out of Hiruko."

Sasori was taken aback at the statement, giving a quick glance at Orochimaru before continuing in a hush voice, "_I can't do that_."

"O-oh, right."

The snake made his way over, causing both to stiffen. "What? You're too afraid to cross it? I'm sure Deidara here doesn't have a problem with it, and neither do I. Besides, Hiruko isn't all that heavy. How do you know the path will break under its weight?"

"It will, trust me." Sasori steered the puppet to face the woods behind them. "It's better if we turn back and go the other way around. It may be longer but the risk is lower.

Deidara eyes met his, the redhead becoming quite serious. "Come on, let's go."

"How about you go take your_ safer_ path while me and the boy take this route. We'll meet up on the other end. These two paths meet right?"

The child nodded.

Sasori growled at his partner, Orochimaru stared for a moment before feigning surprise. "Sorry! It's the kid's choice of who he goes with. So Deidara, who are you going to accompany?"

Deidara blinked, considering both sides. Though the choice was obvious, he still thought about going his usual route. He never really did get to go out much in Iwagakure, but that didn't mean he didn't receive education about the outside world beyond the cliffs that surrounded the village. He knew for a fact that this path was safe, and was written to be a regular choice for Iwa ninja who wanted a safe path out of the country. Of course, Sasori wouldn't know that, so he was doubtful about this way. Even then, the boy wouldn't mind some time away from the pale snake.

Immediately, he clung to the puppeteer's side. "I'm staying with Sasori no danna."

"Suit yourself." Orochimaru shrugged.

Orochimaru turned away but paused to speak again, "I'm going to check for weak spots in the village's security. I've already confirmed that there's a hidden guard scattered around the north and south areas. We have no choice but to go through."

"Then go ahead and do it. We'll meet you there."

* * *

The longer path ran through the grove, rounding the edge of the mountains on a smoother route with few obstacles. The floor seemed nearly untouched, road already patched with flora and grass that had managed to erode away the gravel path. It would be one of the last few fairly sized forests they'd see before advancing further into Earth country. With the rock formation separating the forests, each patch became its own ecosystem, isolated from any other grove. Each forest was different. Here for example, the mushrooms Deidara saw were tinged red instead of the normal brown, and trees seemed to twist awkwardly in strange shapes. Much like a hive this area was, every single hole filled with a forest isolated from every other. Further in, the area would become even more inhospitable, where groves could not originate so easily.

No forest here was like any other, so Deidara had more of a reason to stick close. Even then of the potential mild danger, his eyes didn't wander, glued to the road ahead.

"You've been quiet."

Sasori spoke, breaking the silence. It took a while for the child to register the voice, lost in his own thoughts for a while. He paid some attention to his master.

"Ever since we started this mission. My partner...he scares you," Hiruko's head tilted upwards, expecting an answer.

A fox screeched in the distance, it's bark echoed in the trees. They continued on their way, a silence following the sentence. Sasori sat cross-legged inside his puppet, giving another glance towards the child he chose to take under his wing. The puppeteer wasn't much of a talker, but the noiseless behavior of the boy had begun to trouble him.

"Orochimaru was originally attempting to gain information about the Akatsuki before he joined. I went with Leader to encounter him and put a stop to it. After I defeated him, he proposed to be recruited into our ranks. I of course, opposed that idea but Leader allowed it nonetheless. That was the only that time that Orochimaru saw my body. I was sure that he'd be killed so I thought nothing of getting out for some fresh air. Leader's idea was that he'd be kept close in order to restrict his movements. I've been tasked ever since to keep an eye on him and report back regularly."

"He says he wants some eye jutsu."

"Really?" Sasori sounded interested, "I already know what he wants, but I was unaware that he wanted a dojutsu. Did he tell you that?"

"Last night. He started telling me about this eye thing that could copy people. I don't know if it's a good idea to tell you though..." The boy trailed off.

"Don't worry, I won't speak a word about it. Anyway, once this mission is over, he won't be around as often anyways."

"Here's how it's gonna go. If what your telling me is somewhat accurate than this will be the plan: we get through your village in disguise and once we're on the other side, we'll be free to go as far as we please. It's just an abandoned building right?"

"Yep. It's a single place, I don't know anyone who lives nearby."

"Then it makes it easier. No need to find some tree in a forest."

Deidara cocked his head. "Wha?"

"It's a figure of speech, now get a move on or we'll be late."

* * *

A pale hand hovered over the ground, pulling in five snakes that slithered into his sleeve. Orochimaru stood up and turned towards the arriving pair, having just finished his part. A grin made its way upon his face.

"Took you long enough."

Sasori paused and let Hiruko stare squarely at his partner, speaking hoarsely, "Well? What does it look like?"

"Iwagakure appears to be made up of many tower-like structures formed of rock. Getting through won't be as easy without flat ground."

The child shifted nervously on the spot to await his mentor's reaction. He hadn't informed the two of what his village was like so such a change of plans may rile up some people. He hadn't been to other villages, but the boy never really thought they could be much different to his own. If this seemed like a surprise to the two Akatsuki, than perhaps this would harder than he first thought. It wasn't like he knew if Sasori and Orochimaru to have ever been to Iwa before.

"There's no streets?"

Orochimaru spoke with a sly smile, "Iwagakure is different in structure from other villages. Due to the environment, they've taken advantage of the mountain range in favor of a military advantage in geography rather than comfort. Their streets are replaced by bridges from one area to the next. Any flat ground is a platform carved out intentionally. There will be eyes everywhere, so it may be harder to cross. There are some platforms for buildings and solid roads but they're far in between."

The snake paused for dramatic effect, eyeing his partner's subordinate. "However, things have seemed to have gone in our favor. The village is in shambles and crawling with ninja. An attack must have been executed on it before our arrival. They're relying on not being noticed in order to get themselves together again. However, we already have."

"An attack?" Sasori repeated.

Deidara shrugged back. That attack, less of an attack than a retaliation on his part. It was his own fault the village had crumbled, but word didn't seem to have gotten out yet.

Hiruko's head swung towards the blond menacingly, dead eyes staring straight into his own with a sudden 'clack'.

"You know something about this?"

The boy collected his memories first. Now brought up to the plate, he might as well explain it best he can. "There was no attack. I...killed someone by accident after I got my hands," Said palms were brought into view, presented to the pair to observe as the mouths lolled about. "Onoki got angry with me and the ANBU were trying to catch me. I blew them up and.."

Deidara shrugged made a sheepish look, "I made the village go boom too?"

The puppet's head lowered, searching for a lie in his words. Confirming to believe it with himself, Sasori went on, "Then how did you get on the road before I came by?"

"There were more ninja's so I ran away. After I blew them up, I got tired and looked for help. Then you showed up."

"Aw, that's a sweet story," Orochimaru commented, earning a glare from his partner.

"We should steer clear of the damaged areas then. If we go now, we should be able to the other side by nightfall. We still have to scale the range and actually get into the village first."

* * *

"Excuse me, do you two have a pass to enter the village?"

A hand beckoned from the guard at the entrance. Two men stood near the crevice between both rock formations, neither making eye contact with him. The guard frowned hearing no reply from either, almost as if he hadn't been heard at all. As if on cue, a shinobi emerged from the corner, blocking the two from sight.

"They have permission to enter. Since they have no passes, I've been instructed to escort them in."

The guard opened his mouth but paused, a stiff sensation coming over his body. Rigidly, he stared wide-eyed past the shinobi, hand extended towards his direction from the shorter man, a soft blue glow emitted from his fingers.

"I-Intruders..!" It came out as a choke, jaw held closed from upturned threads.

Orochimaru chuckled, allowing a snake to fall from his sleeve. It swiftly slithered to the guard's side, rearing up before sinking it's fangs into the guard's flesh. A muffled scream emitted from the ninja, only to be silenced as his pupils rolled into his skull. The body fell limp, released by the threads to slump against the table.

"What happened to him?"

The tiny voice came from nowhere. Sasori had their 'escort' go ahead of them in as he answered, "He's just paralyzed for now. He'll be dead within half an hour."

The snake returned to its master's sleeve, both partners exchanging glances before continuing through the narrow path. Dark faded out into light. As told, buildings with spiral staircases towered over the area. This portion of the village in particular was littered with construction platforms, many jabbed its legs against the steep slope of the rock tower. The Akatsuki stepped onto the rope bridge, barely receiving looks from passerby's who occupied the area. They looked much like everyone else, civilian clothing with completely different faces more liken to middle-aged men rather than a pale snake and its red-haired shorter companion. With a Shinobi guiding them, no one gave a second thought. No alarm was to be had if he closest ninja in the vicinity was relaxed.

Platforms were more common around the tops of the roofs, scarred over in black. Rigid edges indicated that the rock had been impacted and broken, the rubble pushed over the edge of the building into the deep chasms beneath the habitable area. Both steered clear of the construction deeper into the village, preferring to the side where the building lessened into markets. The crowd grew and soon swamped them with strangers. The ninja pulled them into a narrow alley between two walls, rounding a dark corner to a stop.

_POOF_

_POOF_

Once again cloaked in black, Deidara separated from Sasori. A combined transformation to lessen the amount of people who had to enter, two was company while three is often considered for protection.

"That was a bit more of a fuss than I would have liked." Said Orochimaru.

"It's fine. I lost one of my spies here, so I'll be using this one as a replacement."

The child eyed his mentor's new spy; a blank stare came off of the Iwa shinobi, as if in a trance. Earlier, they had come across a lone ninja that had wandered from the safety of the gates. From there, the snake held the man down as Sasori performed a jutsu on him. From what it seemed like, it was a spell that made the man the Akatsuki's new puppet, able to follow orders of Sasori and Sasori alone.

It was kind of strange really, to see one of his own standing next to the Akatsuki. Deidara hadn't imagined such a situation would pop up where he'd see both without the two duking it out somehow.

"Danna, why didn't one of you turn into a rock ninja? That's easier."

"If we did that, than we'd have to create a completely new ninja. Also, it would cause suspicion if we came through and the guard found our escort to be a ninja he doesn't know. It was a gamble but our chances of getting through were pretty good the moment he chose to use a real shinobi as our escort. Besides, we get through and I get a new spy."

Sasori paused for a moment. "Now then, where do we go from here?"

The blond hummed thoughtfully, "I don't come to this part of the village a lot, but I know the scroll is in a forest place. It's probably in a training ground somewhere or a blocked off area."

Immediately, he received an annoyed glare. Briefly reminded of Sasori's impatience, Deidara shuddered and forced himself to keep going.

"I-it's east, I know that. It's not in the village though..." He trailed off, gauging the others reactions. Focusing on the wall behind them, the child continued. "It's not too far off, just east outside of the canyon. It's like a jungle place. It's inside a building. Jirou told me it was a lab, but it's not used anymore so it's really dark and mossy."

The glare softened into a neutral expression. The redhead glanced around quickly and stepped further into the alley.

"Then it shouldn't be too hard to find. Orochimaru and I will start heading there. I don't want you falling behind so stick close. If you get lost, don't expect me to find you again."

* * *

**A/N: Sorry about the long wait! I was finishing up school projects and finals but now I finally have the time to update my work! It's been about...a month? Even then, I had stuff to do and I was on a writer's block for the fanfic. Now though! I am back! I've broken through and ready to get this part over with! **

**Nice to be back! Nice to meet you! - 17stepsdown**


	21. The Successful Experiment

**The Successful Experiment**

_Fwup_

The girl smirked confidently, tugging at the ends of cloth that held her headband up to her forehead. Holding a gloved hand up to the surface, she felt the smooth metal and ghosted over the rock carved into it. The symbol of Iwagakure now donned her, marking her as a fully-fledged shinobi.

"Kurotsuchi!"

Akatsuchi approached, gaining his friend's attention. "There's a new restaurant opening today. Wanna go?"

She lifted her chin, slightly annoyed by the question. "I already ate breakfast. I'm gonna go train. Better way to spend time then at some rink dink restaurant."

The boy furrowed his eyebrows. Kurotsuchi had changed quite a bit starting a few months ago. Perhaps it had to do with Deidara leaving the village, but Akatsuchi sensed that was only partially the reason. "You're genin now. Come on, you've been training every day. Take a break."

"No way," She spat. "I finally get the chance to be the spotlight and you're telling me to take a break? Big bro used to be the old man's biggest concern, but now that he's gone, I can take his place. If I'm going to do that, I'm gonna need to be just as strong as him."

* * *

_Orochimaru's out right now. I can't exactly keep watch if his movements but I doubt this village knows enough about us to be useful._

It was a fairly rural area. The rope bridges had been replaced by solid ground for once, where the land rose up in steep slope against the mountains that served as the village's walls. Military information was kept to the shinobi only. In a place where there were villagers further away from the center of information gave them the best chances to take a breather. If this was the Leaf Village, than Sasori would have likely kept the snake on a short leash, for now though, they could be fairly relaxed. No other village knew as much as Konoha about the Akatsuki.

Deidara sat on a low stone wall. For a while now, Hiruko had remained motionless by the grove of trees, shadowed over. It was a known fact to him that his master was inside, but the inability to see him made the child slightly uncomfortable.

Life had changed quite a bit now. Instead of being confined to the walls of Iwagakure, the blond had been dragged along to see the tall skyscrapers of Amegakure as well as the festivities of smaller villages along with the grand sea that was of the port village. He had been paranoid back then, keeping watch of those who might want to capture him. Now, he had the Akatsuki keeping his back, or as much as he trusted them to.

Jirou had been a huge threat before, fulfilling Deidara's fears about pursuers that may want to harm him. Explosions that made the child's own blasts pale in comparison as well as the rash personality to back it up. Even in the face of that however, Sasori stood tall and defeated Jirou with only the mild hindrance of Deidara tagging along for the ride. Sasori was only one of the members that the Akatsuki had in store. Even then, the redhead seemed to be tame compared to some of the other members he had met.

The Leader of the Akatsuki, god of Ame or whatever. Though the puppeteer had the nerve to joke around with the man, the very aura of him seemed to bring those before him to his knees. He needn't even perform a jutsu, his voice enough seemed inhuman somehow, not that of mortality if the child took his claimed title into account.

The masked guy, Kakuzu as he remembered quite well as intimidating. Taller than even Pein, he dwarfed Sasori in height and build. On their very first meeting, it took only a split second for them to establish who was superior. With every movement he made, Kakuzu seemed to be itching to kill someone, clutching his ryo with a firm hand. There was no need to exchange any words. Deidara knew from the moment they met that he was not to go near, or suffer grave consequences.

Tobi was a whole other story. Though not exactly a member, they were in the same rank. Despite the guy's carefree nature, Deidara could also sense that he had nothing to fear. Even when he acted scared it almost seemed feigned. Be it he was older, he would have thought of it as mockery.

The Akatsuki, for as little as he knew, possessed members that lived with little to worry about. Each one was confident in their skills, perhaps only receiving rivalry with other members.

"Danna?"

"Hm?" Hiruko remained still.

"Is there anything out there that could kill an Akatsuki?"

Sasori paused, pondering the question suspiciously before resuming his work. The child remained curious, with a wide-eyed look to boot. Be it the question was asked by someone older, someone who may be able to comprehend the possibility of it being a not-so-innocent question, the puppeteer would have thought twice to answer. Deidara however was barely ten, probably oblivious as to the risk of that enquiry. The child didn't hesitate to ask, so he could only assume that his subordinate meant no harm by it.

"I don't know kid. As far as I can tell, the Akatsuki are some of the strongest ninja around. Unfortunately, I can't say for sure that we're invincible. I wouldn't worry too much though; everyone else on the food chain is small-fry to me."

Deidara blinked. "Food chain?"

"The basic hierarchy of organisms. Those lower on the chain are food for those above them. For us, you could say we're at the top of the pecking order. We're not threatened by many things. To stay safe, that's why the Akatsuki were formed. The group provides protection."

"You on the other hand, are nearer to the bottom of the pecking order. You were lucky enough to escape your village, and win the lottery by making me drag you along into the Akatsuki."

The subordinate took a moment to absorb the information, hopping off the short stone wall to make his way over to the puppet. He seemed unfazed by the idea, that he was prey for everyone else. Deidara plopped down next to Hiruko.

"I didn't make you do anything."

Sasori ignored the remark to continue. "You're with us, but you're not really part of the Akatsuki. For example, if you get captured, I have no obligation to save you." _That would be a lie though; I have a good idea of how Konan would react if I let him get killed..._

The child's face twisted in confusion. Of course, he understood completely what the redhead said, but found himself still stuck on the whole 'pecking order' and 'food chain' thing. It was whole new ranking system to him. He knew well enough that the cat eats the mouse while the bear crushes the cat. Even then, Deidara only knew of the ninja ranking system, and was overall unfamiliar with the idea of there being more than a cat and mouse.

"I found a building about 200 meters northeast from here."

Deidara yelped in surprise, spinning around to find Sasori's partner standing right behind him. Pale face staring down between black bangs, the snake had returned. In shock, the boy leaned back as he stared upwards, banging his head against Hiruko's hard shell.

"Agh!"

Orochimaru watched unamused as the blond clutched his head, wincing at the pain. Hiruko pivoted slowly, turning to face his partner.

"It's a run-down place. In the thick of the forest, I doubt many people have found it. It has two floors with vines all over. I don't think it functions anymore."

Hiruko gave the child a small nudge, pulling him to attention. Deidara looked up towards the old face.

"That sound like the place?" He gruffly asked.

Deidara recalled the description in his mind, slowly nodding as an image of the place faded into his head. He felt relieved, though he didn't show it. To be truthful, he didn't actually know where the building was. The child didn't exactly take note on the direction when he first arrived, rather too hyped to get a cool new jutsu than observe his surroundings. Despite his purpose, Deidara knew for a fact that he was pretty much useless right now, he couldn't even provide directions in own country.

Shuffling sounds indicated that the puppeteer had finished, turning to the right. "Well then, we shouldn't waste any time."

* * *

"I got word, there have been suspicious activity sighted."

Sasori spoke through his new puppet, their 'escort'. Hidden in the bushes, he kept Deidara's head down, watching carefully from the brush. Of course, they could just kill him, but killing wasn't always an option. Unlike the guard at the front, the ones here seemed more easily swayed.

The ninja frowned. "Where?"

"I don't know the details but there's been a sighting near the ravine."

"Hm. Thank you."

The two exchanged nods before the guard ran off. Sasori finally let up, allowing the child a breath or two. As a puppet, he didn't need to worry about his breath being heard, but he still warned the blond to hold his own until he was permitted to let it out. Deidara gasped, coughing for a few moments. He'd never held his breath for longer than half a minute.

"You could've just killed him..." The boy murmured.

The Akatsuki gave him a disinterested glance, focusing back on his spy. "We can't leave too many bodies lying around. The less people we kill the better. We're not here to cause a ruckus."

Deidara opened his mouth to argue but decided better. Right now, he was vulnerable enough in his own birth village. Despite his urge to retort, the blond recognized what was a stupid idea and what wasn't; for the most part that was. He waited in a crouched position, readying himself for when Sasori would give the okay that they could continue forward.

It was nearing the end of noon now. Dodging shinobi in the village had costed them the majority of the day. Orochimaru seemed to split from them often, and the boy could sense that he wasn't exactly too fond of Sasori either. Though it seemed more like annoyance than dislike. The attitude was mutual apparently, since the redhead also wasn't comfortable around the snake. Sasori gave him a nod, signaling the okay. The pair emerged from the bush. Deidara felt fingers rake at his hair, realizing shortly that the puppeteer was ridding some twigs and leaves from his locks. His partner could be seen further ahead, advancing deeper into the forest before the other Akatsuki could.

This place seemed familiar, a small memory popped up in his mind of his first trek to this area. The placement of the trees and mossy ricks perfectly aligned with the image. A shiver ran down his back, deja vu had plagued him. It was just like before, when Jirou gladly lead him down this very path. His tongues restlessly lolled about, excitement rising with every step that they neared.

* * *

_The two stood outside a run-down building on the outskirts of the village. Near it, was what probably used to be a settlement of some kind. Now, the area was filled with wooden houses that already succumbed to the wrath of nature._

_Deidara couldn't help but feel a little uncomfortable here. Standing inside the cool, stonewalled hallways. Looking over his shoulder, he stared at the door he had just walked through. A small breeze had made its way inside, successfully giving Deidara goosebumps. Above him were ceiling lights that probably had seen better days. Already, dead bugs had piled within the outer plastic near the broken bulb. Dark walls were crawling with vines that dug large cracks across the concrete. What Deidara assumed was moss had grown in patches on the wall._

* * *

This false sense of security...

Sasori continued inside of Hiruko as they made their way closer, tailing Orochimaru who was dead-set on encountering the building. Disinterested in sticking by his partner, he hurried to a stop.

Deja vu worsened when the child set his sights on the building once again. Its mossy walls and broken windows radiated an eeriness. The familiar cobblestone floor around the building had grown over, barely visible anymore against the grass and ferns. His hands began to jerk more violently, but Deidara chose to ignore it. He figured it was normal, but not for reasons he could logically voice.

Slobbery sounds caught the redhead's attention. It didn't take long to notice the blond wasn't alright. Instead of his usual personality, he was unusually silent, unable to tear his eyes from the building.

"You okay?"

He asked barely above a whisper. It was enough for Deidara to notice though, since he quickly met gazes with the other. The blond stood for a moment.

"Can I...can I stay here?"

Hiruko shook his head. "I don't want Orochimaru to be the one to get the scroll. I'll go in and you need to lead me there. You can't stay."

The answer came off as final, with no room for argument. The puppet shuffled up to his partner, discussing something out of earshot that the snake didn't seem too happy about. The pale man scowled after he spoke, forcing on a grudging smile afterwards when the puppeteer muttered something else under his breath.

Hiruko gestured towards his subordinate, allowing Deidara to follow him into the entrance. The double doors were broken down, what remained of them visible a few meters into a nearby bush. Deidara wearily gave the entrance a look over, accidentally locking eyes with Orochimaru who glared momentarily, causing the boy to yelp and dash after his mentor.

Once the snake was out of sight, Deidara exhaled loudly. He didn't like Orochimaru any more than Sasori seemed to, but unlike the redhead he was a little kid who could barely produce a clone. A creepy abandoned building paired with a person with pale skin and black hair didn't please him at all. It was almost like those ghost stories that he heard coming from Kurotsuchi that kept him awake for nights on end, though he never admitted it.

It wasn't entirely the same however. Today, the bats seemed absent from their usual hangouts, and the lack of breeze stilled the air. Deidara recalled his memory again, realizing quickly that the putrid stench was also strangely absent, now replaced by a damp muddy stench along with what smelled like rodent feces.

"Deidara."

Said boy came to attention, whipping his head in the Akatsuki's direction.

"Well? Where is it? Show me already." Sasori spoke impatiently.

Deidara nodded, continuing in front of the elder. Letting himself gaze down the hallway paused him, suddenly finding that the hallway looked darker now than it did at his first visit. Perhaps it was because Jirou had blocked the view before, but now Deidara stood in the lead, the new position giving the boy an entirely different view of the old building.

In a hurry, the child shook his head to snap himself back to reality. This was not his memory anymore. Jirou is dead. He's here and now, with Sasori with him as well. No longer was he ignorant of what this place was for and what it meant to experience severe physical pain. It was all a repetition, but Sasori had simplified his role. All he needed to do was navigate the halls and lead them to their goal. He'd need to focus and push away the nagging feeling at the back of his mind. Sasori was here and impatient, the only thing that mattered right now.

The child mustered up his courage, venturing into the darkness. The only memory he needed to access now was the memory of what directions he had followed Jirou in. For now, every single other memory would be buried in his mind, they were useless at the moment.

The pair continued in, Deidara pausing every now and then to squint and get better look at his surroundings. Sasori didn't interrupt, allowing the child some silence to think but left his footsteps loud enough that the creaks in the background didn't distract him. Children were easily scared and were likely to make something out of nothing. Banging pipes earned a squeak from the blond, requiring the puppeteer to explain away that it was probably a sewage problem or a bunch of rats pushing their weight into the small space inside the tubes.

A familiar door came into sight, visible by the window right across. Sasori noticed the child shudder at the view, faltering for a moment to consider the window. A mold had grown onto the glass, seeping through cracks in the corners and an impact hole that indicated that a kunai or shuriken had struck it at one point in time. Deidara's face scrunched up at a sharp smell, glancing at the mossy door.

_The door...it's closed now._

Deidara attempted to imagine what was past the door. Jirou had told him that it was probably a dead animal, but by now, Deidara knew how much of a liar that ninja was. Whatever was behind that door, he could only think was anything but an animal.

A clacking sound didn't stir his attention, the familiar disturbance probably originating from Sasori moving about inside of Hiruko. However, this time, the child regretted not asking what his danna was about to do.

_BANG_

The door slammed open, Deidara froze on the spot, ears ringing at the loud sound. Sasori had slammed the door down with Hiruko's tail, the appendage now hanging over his head in contemplation. Before feelings of irritation or anger could settle though, a sudden rush of fear and horror came over the child's senses. He hadn't even registered what he was seeing before his panic meter kicked into overdrive.

Bodies. Bodies everywhere lay strewn across the floor. Each one wore the trademark Iwagakure shinobi uniform, their identities completely anonymous. Dried black blood splattered across the walls, already flaking off after the impact of the door being smashed through. It was a blood bath; large quantities of the liquid now stuck to the floor seemed to seep from the hands, chests and heads of each victim. Around ten people piled up on each other, a sickening rotting smell flooding his senses.

Sasori took a gander around, approaching one of the corpses. The bodies on top looked fresh compared to the ones below it. The ones on top were already far passed the phase of livor mortis. Insects had been eating away at them, larvae patches throbbed against the wounds, some maggots crawling against the dried flesh. The wounds weren't arbitrarily placed, determining that the ninja hadn't been killed in a fight or tortured to death. The wounds were old, but with Sasori's experience, he could tell easily that the wounds came from within the body and tore outwards. At these wounds were what looked like slits, familiar ones at that. Sasori had seen them before just recently; Deidara introduced him to his mouths after all.

He shoved the corpse onto its side and barely reacted as the rotting shinobi vest flopped from the man's back. A large toothy grin looked back at him, however motionless and infested with ants and maggots.

"I'm scared..."

Deidara squeaked shakily. The small cry for help didn't escape Sasori's attention, only now realizing that perhaps investigating this room wasn't the best idea.

The child was curled onto the ground, head buried in his knees to shield his eyes from the view. He trembled on the spot, muttering the same few words with a gradual rise in tone. Sasori approached his subordinate calmly, the last thing he needed was for the boy to scream in hysterics.

"I'm scared...I'm scared...danna..."

Sasori nudged the boy, letting his tail curve over the two in comfort. Deidara wearily looked up, averting he eyes from the view to look up at the old face that was Hiruko. Even through the mask that he wore, Deidara sensed that Sasori was at least trying. However, no amount of comfort could immediately shed all his fear. It didn't take a genius to figure that using his usual gruff tone wouldn't make it easier for either of them. For now, the puppeteer would use his regular voice.

"I thought that this room was where the scroll was. Obviously..." Sasori paused. "It seems it wasn't."

Deidara hid his face.

"I did some research on your jutsu. Tobi came in before to give me the papers related to it. While I pushed you out with him, I looked them over and came to learn some things. First, your mouths are the result of a summoning creature creating a symbiosis with itself and your body. In short, it feeds off your chakra while your get the added protection of what could be considered a second brain and the ability to mold your chakra into objects. It was probably a deep-sea creature that got utilized by the Iwagakure military."

"Second, the organism in your body takes a while to mature. A set number of months depending on its age. When it finally matures to the final stage of its physical form, tattoo-like marks will appear on the mouth of your chest, signaling this. I stopped you from feeding it any clay, since the only purpose of this organism is to feed off your chakra and explode when it has grown. If it weren't for Tobi or me, you'd be dead."

"Third, the organism is a soft-shelled cell, meaning it can't survive external threats easily. This is where the host comes in. The protocol I read about included slitting the hands and transporting the organism into your bloodstream. In your body, it becomes sheltered from external forces and attaches itself to your chakra system, feeding off it to grow. In order to make the safest transfer, it releases chemicals that paralyze you and steady your physical movement. This part of the process is the most risky however since an inexperienced one may have screwed up your genes and put your mouths in the wrong places. Thus, killing the host."

Deidara had long stopped trembling, becoming interested in the little monologue. Though he still averted his eyes from the view of the room, he stared at his hands.

"The success rate of the jutsu was incredibly low, so the institute here got shut down. However, it seemed that some people continued to tamper with the equipment and continue its research. These people here were probably all hosts that subject themselves to the jutsu. There's probably more than this, hundreds even."

"And out of all those attempts, you were the only successful one."

* * *

**A/N: I got a bit stressed out for a moment. I sent this chapter to my Beta(Anniegirl132) but I wondered when I would get it back. I wasn't getting an Email but then I realized I was stupid and checked the site. Anyway! I'm happy to get this much done! This arc is short so it's really only four or so chapters to go.**

**I'm gonna have a timeskip after this arc is over. Deidara's gonna get a huge change in personality when that comes. It's all planned though so it's not some quick fix to his flat personality here. Sasori will also change, he may be stranger but I have my reasons. **

**Thanks to Anniegirl132 for being my Beta! Nice to meet you! **


	22. The End of Sasori

**The End of Sasori**

Sasori lead the little boy out, giving light nudges to get him out the room. The child stood and stared at the filthy floor, terrified to look anywhere else. The puppeteer maneuvered the puppet to block the entrance of the door, obscuring the gruesome view.

"The rotten air isn't good for you."

Deidara slowly looked upwards, relief coming over his face to find that he was no longer within the mangled space. His shoulders relaxed, pupils reverting to a normal size. The redhead waited patiently for the boy to calm down. While in a state of panic, there was no way they would navigate this place correctly. It was either fail the mission or wait a little. Sasori hated waiting, but this was neither the time or place to be complaining about that.

The blond made a movement towards the right of the hall, eyes strictly avoiding the room. Silently, the boy made a gesture to follow, and walked quickly down the dark corridor.

For a moment, Sasori caught a glimpse of a face he'd never seen before on the boy. While the child usually remained displeased or curious, Deidara had always been lively, but the expression he had the chance of witnessing wasn't that at all. Instead, it was a blank look, a near accurate copy of his own. Blue eyes became lidded and calm, unreadable with a thin line of a mouth. Shoulders relaxed, Deidara turned like a robot on duty, head first and body second. Deidara didn't even seem to acknowledge Sasori's existence, giving a stare that looked right through his armor.

Echoing footsteps reverberated off the cold cement walls. Deidara didn't hesitate or stop to get a good look around anymore, instead walking forward as if guided. The puppeteer found himself examining the child, looking for signs of being controlled, but found none as of the moment. Deidara was moving of his own free will, it was beginning to creep him out. It was strange that the boy need not to look around anymore, for the corridor had darkened into a pitch black. Sasori could see in the dim light, having created his eyeballs to be able to adjust to any sort of darkness as long as there was even a shred of light. However, he doubted Deidara had that very same ability.

"It's here." Deidara spoke in a toneless voice. He stepped to side and let his danna through, earning a suspicious stare from the puppet. Sasori stared at his subordinate, searching his face for any alarming signs. It was as if all soul had been lost from the child's face, grey and unwelcoming. Deidara had removed his bang, hanging it over his ear to reveal his other eye, which looked the exact same as the other, cloudy and faded. It was probably how Deidara could see at all in this light. With one eye kept to the dark twenty-four-seven, the child could remove his bang to make it adjust to the lower light levels. He didn't have to wait to see, he could already do it. Deidara wasn't blind even when the pitch black came around.

Sasori turned to the door hesitantly, looking upwards. Though it was little but a silhouette, there was a clearly seal on the door. It looked new compared to the materials surrounding it, its edges which should have been chipping and worn were cleanly cut. If Sasori could voice a guess, the old seal had been broken and a new one was put up. Probably after Deidara left this place the first time.

_POOF_

Standing surely at the door with Hiruko put away, the puppeteer squinted his eyes to focus on the kanji written. Seals weren't easily broken, but there was a technique that he knew of that could easily disrupt it. If he could weaken the seal...

Sasori fished through his sleeves, pulling out a paper tag with a different kanji written on it and stuck on top of the previous seal. A hiss emitted from the paper, eventually lighting up in a burning flame. Starting with the corner, he watched as both papers were engulfed in the flame, a white smoke wisp coming off the painted areas.

_An even number seal placed by an odd numbered seal makes creates imbalance in chakra, it weakens the seal and eventually erodes away at it. Orochimaru handed over the spell in exchange for some privacy; where the words are switched around so it burns quickly instead of eroding over time._

Sasori looked down at the blond by his side, a faded reflection of the flame glowing off the unusually clouded eyes. At least the child was responding as he was supposed to. Sasori half expected to look down and see Deidara eyeing the space in front of him, but as it seemed, the boy was still curious. A wave of relief washed over the puppeteer. Deidara wasn't being controlled, but probably scarred slightly by the red room a few moments ago. At least he was quiet.

_Fsss..._

By now, both tags had been burnt to a crisp, still stuck to the surface but slowly peeling. Sasori put out the flame with his finger, eventually pulling off the paper and discarding it. He pressed a hand to the door.

"I'm going to go in and get it. You stay out here and wait for me, okay brat?"

Deidara faltered, eyes opening wide for a moment. His pupils cleared at the sound of his nickname, gazing around in confusion before looking up to Sasori in a shock. The child opened his mouth to say something but stopped himself, simply nodding hesitantly.

"Good. There might be bodies in there and I don't know if you want to see them."

"Uh-uh." Deidara shook his head childishly. "There aren't any."

Assured, the door slowly swung open, letting the redhead get through. Deidara glimpsed behind him in fear, quickly clinging to the door as he watched the puppeteer's outline fade and appear again as a familiar pair of flames lit up. The child felt another twinge of Deja vu hit him, though not as strong since he was not the exact spot as he was before.

Sasori stepped up the platform, realizing quickly that the scroll wasn't going to be too convenient to carry. _Doesn't matter though, I'll just seal it in a smaller scroll._

The scroll was transported to the floor. Sasori sat down and pulled out one of his own, a plain red scroll that he often used for holding larger objects. Setting it on the floor, the puppeteer rolled it open and pressed the piece of wood in the spine, allowing an ink container and paintbrush to slide out. It was a convenient contraption. He'd seen it in art shops and thought to make one of his own instead of having to pull out a regular inkbottle and brush.

Swiftly writing the Kanji onto the paper, he let it dry and placed the larger jutsu scroll on top, holding his hands into a tiger hand seal. With a poof, the scroll was gone.

_He's awfully quiet again. Probably scared of the dark_. Sasori grabbed the scroll and stood up to face his subordinate. "Catc-"

"_MMMPH_!" Deidara attempted to scream, a cloth pulled around his mouth.

Sasori froze, eyes widening as about five figures appeared into sight, each bearing masks of different avian creatures.

The child squirmed, hands tied to his back in a painful grip. He lifted his leg and tried to the kick the man behind him, but with as little physical strength as he had, the ANBU behind him barely moved a muscle. Something clinked in his pocket, Deidara's eyes growing wide in terror as the blade of the kunai was brought to his neck, pressed lightly against his skin though not hard enough to cause a wound.

_Shit! A trap!_ Sasori moved to draw his puppets, pausing as another muffled scream came from the blond. The blade had been brought deeper, drawing some blood that trickled down his neck. A tear welled up in the child's eye, no longer faded and emotionless as it was moments ago.

No words were needed. A silent threat was thrown his way, and Sasori for once, found himself stuck. That blade too close, no amount of speed would prevent the boy's jugular from splitting in half. Even if he did manage to kill the ANBU holding Deidara down, chances were, Deidara would either die immediately, or from massive bleeding, or choke to death.

Sasori narrowed his eyes and stood in a non-threatening position. Slowly, he lifted his hand, holding up the scroll. In response, the Shinobi nodded as if to say 'yes, we want it back'.

Deidara slowly breathed, terrified to think that even the slightest movement would end him, and not in a particularly painless manner. He wasn't an idiot; he knew exactly what was going on. While he was being held hostage, Sasori was being threatened to either turn himself and scroll in or have Deidara lose his life.

* * *

_Sasori ignored the remark to continue. "You're with us, but you're not really part of the Akatsuki. For example, if you get captured, I have no obligation to save you."_

* * *

_Did he really mean that?_ The boy felt a tear roll down his cheek. Of course Sasori meant it. He was a hardened ninja after all, and Deidara was little more than a thorn in his side that the puppeteer strangely chose not to remove. Yes, he would definitely die. Here and now, those false feelings of security were correct. Sasori was a man to be feared, and the Akatsuki were a group who were not scared to make sacrifices. It was as the redhead answered him, he wasn't even part of the organization. He was a lowly subordinate, a mere toddler, barely a ninja and at the bottom of the food chain. Had Jirou killed him before, nothing would have changed.

Why should his life be saved?

Sasori stayed silent, thinking things over. Hesitantly, he tightened his grip on the scroll and lifted his arm to toss the scroll over to the ANBU.

_He threw it?_ Deidara's eyes followed the scroll, the kunai was spun backwards as so the blade faced away from the child, other hand making a seal that numbed his jaw. The ANBU let go of the blond and caught the scroll. The boy fell to the floor in slump, only holding himself up by his arms and knees. Staring forward, he tried to move his mouth but found it locked in place. _I can't move..._

Sasori turned and dipped his head, the other ninja closing around him. He allowed the rope covered in paper tags to be tied to his arms, holding them together. Deidara speechlessly watched as his mentor was being prepared on the spot to be taken away. The two made eye contact, the Akatsuki giving him a sure look, the opposite of defeat.

_What the...what's that supposed to mean?_ Lost in his thoughts, the boy failed to notice as an ANBU made its way over and tied up his arms as well, a sack put around his hands to prevent his mouths from consuming anything. Unable to speak, the child followed the ANBU out of the room, eyes still locked with Sasori's to see him nod.

Familiar hallways passed. Deidara kept his head low, his heart sunken. Had they really failed the mission? Were they going to die now? How would they die? He'd never seen one of Onoki's executions before. Would they be mercilessly killed? Would Sasori die? How did they treat S-ranks like Sasori? Was it really a wise choice to stick by the puppeteer? Why couldn't he do it? Why couldn't he have just left that kid alone when he insulted him? Why couldn't Deidara just stay at home like a good boy that didn't shove his art in other people's faces?

Even as a tear fell and stained the floor, that was all he had. He was too shocked by the contents of the room to cry, even as Sasori, the very person who gave him a second chance was arrested. He had imagined a scenario like this before, but always thought that Sasori could easily just kill everyone in the way and things would be fine again. Deidara was useless, he was always useless. What had ever done to really help Sasori other than bother him? Even in that strange moment when all fear left his body, when emotions disappeared and all that he could think of was the objective to lead Sasori to the room, he was useless. All he did was lead them into a trap, and now they were really in hot water. Could he even face Onoki after this?

_CRACK_

"!" Deidara snapped out of his thoughts, suddenly aware of his surroundings. The ANBU escorting him was wrapped in a large snake, his head twisted in an impossible angle. Letting the body fall, the snake slithered over and bit the rope, an acid disintegrated it until it was no more.

"Hm...so where's Sasori?" Orochimaru asked. He paused to think, a sinister smile suddenly plastered on his face. "_Is he dead_?"

"..."

"Well?" Orochimaru frowned impatiently.

The boy's eyes moved to stare at his own mouth, shaking his head furiously to get the message across.

"A paralysis jutsu?" The pale man knelt down to the child's height, holding a finger up to his lips while the other hand started a chain of one-handed seals that Deidara didn't recognize as the usual twelve he learned.

A sudden rush of blood reached his veins, pushing away the numbness and allowed him to speak. "A bunch of ANBU took Sasori no Danna! I..." He murmured the rest. "I don't know what to do."

Insensitive to the child's feelings, Orochimaru stood and made a wide grin, eyes wide in excitement. "Sasori is out of the picture?"

The boy made a solemn nod.

"Haha...finally." The snake hissed in glee. "Now then, we should finish up the mission. We don't want your dear mentor's sacrifice to go to waste shall we?"

Deidara's head shot up. "W-what are we gonna do!?"

"We still need that jutsu. They're probably going to put in the same general area where Sasori is. In other words, we follow him and finding the jutsu will be a cinch!"

"Are we going to save Sasori no danna!?"

The pale man ignored his question, turning to trees and bounding off while the child followed in haste. Deidara caught up the Akatsuki, panting as he tried to match his speed. Orochimaru seemed to be in a hurry.

"Are we going to save Sasori no danna?" He repeated.

"Not me. I'm going to finish the mission."

The blond frowned. "But he's your partner isn't he?"

"You think I care?" Orochimaru glared at the boy. "Don't kid yourself. The Akatsuki aren't some big family that cries over every loss we get, we don't put our teammates above the mission. If the situation were reversed, it would be the same. If I were killed, Sasori would likely show no remorse for me as I do now. If he's such a strong ninja as you see him as, then he'll save himself."

Deidara bit his lip, finding the words hard to accept. "...So...what's gonna happen to him?"

"He'll probably face a trial and either get an execution in Iwagakure or get sent back to Suna to face the consequences there. There is a chance that Pein could send for a rescue team, but if that can't save Sasori, than Pein will probably have him killed by the Akatsuki or convince Sasori to kill himself to protect information on the organization."

"Th-that's harsh..."

"Hmph. It's not that strange. The ANBU do it too. When put in a spot where they could very well die or be interrogated with no way out, they burn themselves with their own chakra until they're nothing but a pile of ashes. If they can't do that, then they simply blow themselves up in suicide and take their enemies down with them."

"I'm not about to risk my life and freedom for him. That's someone else's assignment. In the end, Sasori is as much of a puppet as the ones he creates. If the he breaks, all the Akatsuki has to do is get themselves a new puppet."

"Wouldn't that make you a puppet then?"

A deep-throated laugh came from Orochimaru. "I guess it does, doesn't it? But I'm a little different. I'm not bound by the same strings as everyone else."

The forest floor flitted by them, meters passed as they continued. Deidara focused intently on the ground. _No one's going to save Danna. Not even Orochimaru's gonna do it. I'm so useless! So useless!_

Deidara stopped on a branch, eyes squeezed shut. _Useless! Useless! Useless! Useless! Useless! Useless!** Useless!**_

The other paused, looking back at the boy. "What's with you?"

_I'm the only one. He helped me back there. I was tired and vulnerable, and he helped me!_

* * *

_The ground was wet and muddy. The rain poured down on his head, making himself shiver even more. He felt so tired._

_"Hey."_

_Something nudged him._

_"You alive?"_

_Opening his eyes, the child saw a red-haired man who looked to be in his teens crouch down to look at him. The first thing the child thought was about the cloak he was wearing. It was covered in clouds...red clouds._

_"Oh, good, you're awake. My name's Sasori, I'm going to help you."_

_"...Sa...Sasori...scorpion," The blonde murmured, trying to copy the elder's voice._

_"At least you can talk."_

_His eyes closed as he felt something lift him up off the ground. Oh well, at least someone was helping him. It felt nice...to have someone carry him. All his life, he lived on his own two feet. People would pull him along; tell him where to go and what he should look out for._

_It felt nice...to have someone care for you._

_Something only someone who really cared about you huh? Was this it?_

_"I'm the only one...he was the only one..."_

* * *

_"Brat," Sasori called his attention. Crouching down, he faced his back towards the kid, earning a puzzled expression from the blond, "Get on my back."_

* * *

"Ugh..." The child dipped his head lower, hands clenched.

_I have to! I have to repay Sasori! I'll do it!_

* * *

**A/N: Hey guys. I'm really enjoying the plot at this point. I read Naruto Gaiden and writing has gotten a lot easier since. Though I do fear I'm making it too cliché, so I may do some editing along the way. I'm done rewriting the story, now I'm just continuing it. **

**Anyway, I hope you don't mind if I could ask to get some reviews. I want to see what people think and receive some feedback. Thanks guys. **


	23. Continued

**Continued**

_"Out here, the best bet you have is a strong backing, some sort of protection. People who work solo are the most vulnerable. While the weaker survive in groups, even the strong are caught, especially when they're on their own. You understand?"_

_"But, you're on your own right? I don't see anyone with you." The child gazed about the room. "Doesn't that mean you're gonna get caught someday?"_

_"Not necessarily. You see, I'm not alone."_

_"Really?" Deidara leaned in, suddenly interested._

_"First off though, even if I were on my own, I'll tell you right now, I'm not gonna get caught. There are some people out there who are just too strong, and never get caught."_

* * *

Back then, he really believed those words. Though he wasn't very impressed with the lecture, the boy didn't doubt that Sasori was a strong ninja. This point was proven when he defeated Jirou, a man that Deidara_ knew_ he himself couldn't beat. A whole squad had come for the child and not just a small group of five but quite a few ninja, and the puppeteer swat them down like flies.

He really wanted to think that the redhead was capable of escaping, but even if Deidara had never witnessed an execution in his own village, he knew well of the nature of Iwagakure's military system. Iwagakure were no pushovers, and he was well reminded by his mentors of the huge threat that the village posed towards other nations in the Third Shinobi World War. Deidara wanted to believe it, that the redhead could take down anything, but he knew how his old master was. If Onoki thought Sasori was worth it, surely a blast from his Dust Release jutsu would erase every speck of the puppeteer's existence from the land. Catastrophic damage, something even one such as Deidara, a fairly new user of the Hidden Iwagakure Kinjutsu had to fear no matter how experienced he got.

Deidara stood up from his spot and made up his mind. Even if the stakes were stacked against him, there was no guarantee he'd really have to deal with the old man. The most he'd deal with were ninja from his own village, something that the boy had dealt with before. Deidara couldn't assume that Sasori knew very much about the village and its ways, another good reason why the child was brought along. If he wasn't useful before, he might as well make himself useful now.

The sky turned from a pale blue to a warm orange. In a few hours, night would come. Deidara turned on the branch and bounded in another direction. There was no time to lose; he couldn't waste time being unsure of himself.

Orochimaru held his gaze on the boy, deciding quickly to follow after him into the dense growth of the trees. Catching up with the child was easy.

"Where are you going?"

"Night's coming. They're gonna go to a building where they keep people for interrogation." Deidara replied briefly and surely.

"And you know where that is?"

The child faltered and averted his gaze to the ground nervously. "I-I've never been here before, but I know what it looks like and where it is...sort of. In this direction somewhere."

The snake checked the sky, determining the general time. "If you're so determined to get him back then you can wait until its night to break him out."

"I can't do that!" He exclaimed. "I've been there before and they put locks and seals to keep people inside at night. I can't break those. And when it's a really strong ninja, there's always a bunch of other ninja around."

"And that will be any different from daytime how?"

"An interrogation unit will come, so there will be less people. Tomorrow, Sasori no danna gonna be gone."

Orochimaru sneered. "You sure know your stuff. How come you demonstrate your knowledge until now?"

"I don't know everything. It's all just the boring homework and lessons that my tutors taught me. I used to follow Onoki around all the time, so I've seen it. You guys are strong too, so I thought I didn't need to say anything."

Deidara made a guilt-ridden expression. "Back in there...Danna told me to stay by the door. An ANBU put a cloth around my mouth and threatened him to give up or kill me. I really thought...I really thought I was going to die but Sasori no Danna gave up. He told me before that he was too strong to get caught and now he is, and it's all because I lead him to the trap."

The pale man smirked. "If you didn't go in with him, than he could have resisted the ANBU and escaped, is that what you're saying?"

_STOMP_

Orochimaru watched the branch fall, the heavy impact of the step having broken like a twig. He struck a nerve in the blond alright, voicing the cold hard truth is often hard for some to swallow. It didn't bring up any guilt within him however; in fact, the spectacle was quite amusing to him. To try so hard to save another when Deidara could easily make a run for it and protect his own skin.

Well, even as interesting as it was, the snake had an agenda of his own. With Sasori finally out of the picture, he was free to do whatever he wanted. Of course, he already informed Deidara that he would not participate in his little rescue mission, he wasn't interested in using the blond at the moment. The subordinate was disposable, but what he was after right now required far less effort to research. Why get something used when Orochimaru could obtain a new one free?

A building came into view. Deidara hid carefully in the bushes to observe the entrance. A group of ANBU were clustered together, familiar red hair among them. Sasori didn't look bothered at all by the situation, then again though, he didn't seem to show any sort of emotion. The ropes that held him were nothing new to Deidara. The seals withheld chakra and prevented it from molding properly in its vicinity. If Sasori tried to use chakra threads now, they would simply light up and disperse, letting everyone know that he had just tried his luck.

From what he could read, the puppeteer was also aware of this fact. What itched at his mind though was why he didn't at least attempt escape while back at the abandoned institution. Sure, he was surrounded by ANBU, but within the confines of that building, his chances of escape would drop drastically.

_He nodded at me...maybe that meant something._ Whatever Sasori wanted to do, the boy was at a complete loss of why he didn't do it a while ago.

"Well, I'm going to go. I'm not going to wait for you to finish once I get the jutsu, so you're on your own from here."

With that, the snake withdrew and disappeared. Deidara felt the stiffness he had before dissipate, more comfortable alone than with the pale man breathing down his neck. He exhaled and continued to observe.

By now, the group was moving into the building. Sasori didn't seem to notice the child's presence, more concerned with keeping his straight face and head low. The puppeteer was probably going to chew him out for this, but Deidara had enough of sitting around and waiting for things to happen.

* * *

If a cat could fit, Deidara was confident he could fit as well. Open windows were a good way to start, and it was by that exact method that the child was able to sneak by security. A bit tacky but it worked nonetheless.

He could imagine his younger self walking through these halls with an escort to introduce him to the workings of the place. In Iwagakure, he was no normal boy but a favorite of the Tsuchikage's. With no parents to ask for permission, his education was less standard and more of an everyday thing to himself. School was not a class he had to attend every day, but something more similar to lunch and bedtime. Deidara had come here a couple of times, so he couldn't completely trust his directional senses.

Right now, he wished he had planned a little more on how exactly he would even break Sasori out of here. It seemed so simple a few moments ago, ignore the details and just do it sounded like a better idea than waiting for a rescue team that might never even be sent.

The hall remained dark, darker than the rest of the building. It was meant to give an isolating vibe, helpful with interrogation for reasons that the boy didn't quite understand. While it served as an eerie background for those being held in the building, it easily marked which areas that Sasori was being held in.

Deidara crept in the corner, pressing himself to the wall with his body crouched over as so he wouldn't bump into any bystanders. Again, his bang was pinned behind his ear. In a dark environment like this, he'd need his good eye to see.

Light spilled from a window in the wall to the next room. With the hallway vacant, the child determined it safe for him to check.

Slowly, he rose up and peeked into the glass. It looked like an empty room with a metal chair, table and lamp. A sullen figure sat there, face buried in his hands in shame. He ran his hands through his hair, a familiar face finally revealing itself in the light.

_So he got caught too?_ Deidara found it a little strange to see emotion on their spy's face. This was the guy, the one that Sasori had cast the jutsu on to supposedly replace the old spy that he used to have stationed in the village. The usual dull expression was now twisted in a scowl, pleading eyes staring into the wall. A droplet of sweat rolled down his temple, indicating that the man was suffering from some form of stress. Being only a boy, Deidara couldn't make an accurate guess as to the cause of his predicament. Regardless, he'd keep this ninja in mind.

Ducking by the wall again, he crawled further down the hall. Bright reflections were a sign to avoid, knowing well that hiding would get a whole lot harder when in the light. For now, he'd stick to the dark halls.

Deidara emerged around a corner before quickly pulling back, peeking single blue eye into the scene before him. No doubt about it, this was where Sasori was being kept. His hopes fell at the sight of quite a few people crowded in the hall, too busy talking amongst themselves to notice the extra visitor. There was no way he'd be able to get through there without being noticed. Heck, he recognized some of those guys!

A man nodded and turned in the same direction as the boy, causing him to turn and dash away as quietly as he could. Once gone, the child made a tentative sigh, taking a break to sit by the corner. He eyed the hall with a determined face. Deidara had gotten this far, and Orochimaru was probably going to go soon. He'd be lucky if he could break Sasori out fast enough to join the sanin but from what it looked like, this could potentially take a while.

_What should I do? There are too many people! I wonder if they're talking Sasori no Danna right now._ Deidara forced himself to think. If only those people could just leave. However if they did, chances are, they would leave the room in a state where no one without authorization could enter to see the puppeteer. The child considered distracting them, but found the idea hard to go by. How would distract them? With an explosion? Surely even that wouldn't be enough to deter most of them. _They need a reason to leave quickly..._

The child pulled up his knees. He was only a kid unfortunately, and his transformation skills could only go so far. He knew what to transform as, but some Jounin—even Chunin, knew how to spy out a transformation with little more than a glance. Deidara couldn't rely on the results that Sasori and Orochimaru's transformations had produced. Since they were S-class in rank, their level of mastery was probably on par. The child's own petty transformation was capable, but he couldn't keep the illusion up for very long, especially when managing the pressure of keeping the act as well.

He needed someone to do it for him. Deidara grit his teeth in frustration. He couldn't just ask Orochimaru to do it; after all, he refused to even participate in his initiative. Perhaps he could bribe him into it, but with what? Maybe if he offered up his jutsu in exchange for the snake's services, it might work. Even then, Deidara wasn't about to hand over his body in order to get Sasori out. Repay him or not, he valued his life. Not to mention he didn't trust the pale man to use humane methods.

Someone, someone had to do it, someone but himself. Looking at his options, there were really none that seemed to help here, not any the blond could muster up. If only he had someone else on their side. A fourth person.

_Wait...what about..._

* * *

This was going to be a gamble alright, but it was the only thing he could think of. They did have a fourth person, though unassociated with the Akatsuki whatsoever. Deidara hadn't really paid much attention to him, since he was only there to guide them along the way, and not even of his own free will.

The blond made a forced smile. Interesting how he decided how this plan would go. He really was something of a student to Sasori with this idea. Of course, he wasn't nearly as experienced as the puppeteer was, nor did he know at all how to create chakra threads.

Clay spiders juggled in his hand, granted smaller and wetter than his more standard creations. Too big and they would fall off, and they needed to be more moist if they were going to stick correctly. Deidara breathed to calm down, releasing his stress by continuing to juggle the balled up spiders in his palm. His mouths remained inactive and quiet, satisfied with simply having something to chew, even if it wasn't very much.

Deidara crouched low next to the door. No one seemed to pay attention to their spy. Their spy being caught was probably why Orochimaru went in hiding sometime before he was escorted out by the ANBU. Good thing was, at least the Sanin stuck near his post.

He gingerly raised a hand up to the door, knocking it three consecutive times, though making sure to keep it loud and concise as so he sounded like an authority figure. Weak knocks would only require them to be repeated, and as such, would draw some suspicion.

_Knock_

_Knock_

_Knock_

Something squeaked against the tiled floor, footfalls signaling the boy to get ready. Promptly, the knob turned and the door cracked open. A curious head popped out, gazing around in fear turned to confusion. Willing to investigate, the Shinobi stepped out.

_THWACK_

* * *

Sasori shut out the sounds from the outside of the room, left in the empty space alone. It wouldn't be the first time he felt angry with the kid, but he was sure as hell more annoyed now than he's been before. He hid a scowl on his face, sitting still on the metal chair, tied hands looped over the back as so standing was difficult.

A quick mission, one that Sasori felt was a small hurdle to leap if he were to be temporarily relieved of his duty to observe Orochimaru. Sure, he didn't mind spending some time with his new subordinate, but his main drive to finish this assignment didn't focus solely on the boy. And yet worse had come to worse, and Sasori was forced to hand over the mission to his partner, whom he reluctantly trusted to an extent. It was Konan, that was all it was. If Deidara died, then it would be less of a failure of the organization than it would be for the redhead to even consider dragging the boy along.

Emotional attachments...no, that was hardly the case. Sasori had to act fast; he had convinced himself that the whole idea had been just to try, just to see what would happen. Even as Deidara had brought along a slight bit of freedom, no matter how small the situation he was in now was, it still annoyed the crap out of him. Deidara couldn't die, and Sasori refused to think what would have happened if he decided to fight. Deidara would have died of course, but for some reason, despite better judgement, he decided to surrender.

Pathetic. When did he get to this point? Surely the self he had months ago would have been disgusted with where the puppeteer gotten now. Why did he question himself on this topic? Deidara was alive and that was a fixed and gone matter. All he could hope now was that Zetsu wasn't observing this, and if he was, planned to keep it in his head. Sasori didn't need an embarrassing moment like this to go around the Akatsuki.

He twitched his hands slightly, testing the strength of the ropes. Firm and tight, Sasori resisted a smirk; of course, ANBU weren't put to work for nothing. The knot didn't seem to be something that would loosen over time if he kept nagging at it, but he didn't have that sort of time anyway. He let his arms go slack and gazed about the background.

The room was empty, the only window out being a long vertical window in the door. Silhouettes moved about outside, discussing a matter too muffled to eavesdrop on. The walls looked steel enforced, grey and sturdy, not ninja-proof, but good enough to keep a person of relative strength inside for a few hours before breaking out. The door seemed less enforced, beige in color with a line-up of screws framing the edge. Sasori quickly determined his best chances out, with the door thinner than the wall. Unluckily for him though, the screws weren't all that kept the door enforced, but paper tags decorated it; seals. Normally, they wouldn't be a problem but Sasori knew he couldn't just scare everyone off and use the burning tags to burn them away. With those many seals, that task would take at least an entire day.

Well, not everything was ruined. Sasori had one more thing he wanted to check out while he was here. Originally, the plan went that once the mission had been over and the scroll was turned in, Sasori would summon Tobi and leave the brat with him so the puppeteer could return. It was a tentative idea, but was made confirmed once they had entered the bloodied room. They hadn't found it yet, but the second floor of the building intrigued him. If the ANBU hadn't gotten to them first to burn the papers, Sasori would have probably been able to find more details relating to the jutsu. After all, he needed to know something in order to train the kid properly. _Chances are though is that they're destroyed by now. I have a low chance of finding anything._

_BOOM_

Sasori blinked, eyes wide as the ground shook from the sound. From what it seemed, an explosion had gone off, and there was only one person that the redhead knew who would pull something flashy like this. Sasori's face twisted in frustration.

_Damn it Deidara!_

A loud chatter arose from the people in the hall. The door slammed open as an Iwa shinobi darted in to glare at the Akatsuki accusingly.

"Do you know what's going on?"

Immediately, the puppeteer made a straight face, shaking his head silently. He wasn't lying at least. He really _didn't_ know what was going on, and his guesses weren't always accurate. The ninja snarled another accusation, only for his voice to be drowned out by the sounds of yelling and more explosive sounds, though much smaller than the one that had occurred the first time

A man came in and roughly grabbed the ninja's shoulder. "Sir! There's been a break in! It's another Akatsuki!"

"Another one?" He exclaimed.

_Another Akatsuki?_ Sasori felt his anger become redirected, however faded from anger into more of confusion. So it wasn't Deidara was it? And there was only one other Akatsuki member he knew to be in the vicinity right now. Orochimaru?

Another tremor shook the ground, causing pieces of the ceiling to fall. Sasori watched in the calmest state he could as the people up front withdrew from the area.

_BOOM_

An agonized scream seemed to catch the crowd's attention, suddenly more concerned with something else than Sasori. The puppeteer waited as they all filed away from the door before he began to wriggle his arms, looking over his shoulder. He grit his teeth, on normal occasion, he could just as easily use his chakra threads to pull out a kunai or something. However, with chakra binders like these, that would prove hopeless.

"Danna!"

A small figure emerged from the door, running to his side hastily. Sasori looked down at Deidara with an angered look.

"Dammit! Why didn't you leave?"

The child stared at him in shock, shiny eyes indicating that the blond was at the edge of tears. "Why would I leave? They would have killed you!"

"I would have been fine! All you had to do was wait you brat!"

Deidara flinched at the reprimand, opening his mouth to argue before another tremor plagued at the room. The child stumbled and fell on his behind, unable to keep his balance. Sasori sighed exasperatedly.

"Whatever! Just cut the ropes!"

With a nod of agreement, he crawled to the back of the metal chair. Deidara quickly went to work, pulling out a kunai to saw at the ropes. Carefully avoiding the seals as to not trigger a defense response. He knew enough about the ropes that they could not be cut recklessly.

Sasori waited until his arms loosened from each other, quickly breaking free of the ropes before shooting up from his seat.

"So you did make those explosions!"

Deidara made a puzzled expression. "I only made small ones and they're far away! I don't know where the others came from!"

"...Where's Orochimaru?"

Another tremor shook the floor again, causing the boy to stumble again towards the puppeteer, clinging to his cloak to keep standing.

"He said he was going to go get the scroll!"

Sasori growled. "Tch, of course!" He turned to his subordinate. "Why'd you even come? You should have gone with Orochimaru and waited for me to escape! I've done that before you know!"

This earned a sniffle from the child, eyes scrunching up as tears began to flow. "But..." His voice began to become forced, strained almost.

_Crap! Not now!_ Sasori quickly sensed that the blond was going to bawl. Giving a quick glance around, the puppeteer knelt down and swallowed his pride for the third time. Pulling Deidara into an awkward embrace, he attempted a soothing tone, patting the child on the back.

"Uh...look sorry okay? Just please...don't cry, don't cry!"

Much to his dismay, the little blond began to wail his heart out, stuttering apologies through his sobs. Sasori stiffened, wishing he could just crawl under a rock and never see another person again. Great, his cloak was wet and probably stained with snot right now. Not something he could easily hide from others.

Slowly, he let the boy stand on his own, restraining a disgusted look at the tear-ridden face.

"We can't stay here, you got that Deidara?"

He nodded.

"Good, now come on, let's go."

* * *

**A/N: I felt like I rushed this. The arc isn't over yet though, there's a few more chapters to go, around three or four before the time skip. I remembered I had that scene in the beginning where Sasori hugs Deidara and thought I'd repeat it as some of sort of running joke or something that Sasori has to deal with. Anyway, if you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask!**

**Nice to meet ya! **


	24. Junior

**Junior**

"Ugh..."

A faint line of light reached his eyes, lids still heavy. It was obvious he was laying on the floor somewhere, arms still unresponsive to his commands. He seemed to lie on his stomach, a pressure applied to his chest.

"Wha? Awake already?" A childish voice whined. "I must be weaker than I thought..."

Eyes flew open in a shock, a state of panic coming over his body as he realized that he was lying in the middle of a familiar dark hall, with his face down towards the floor. The reflection from a nearby light bulb had created the light he had seen. A lightweight was held to his back, along with some other sticky substance clinging to the insides of his clothes. Looking over his shoulder, he spied a blond child straddling him, eye narrowed in a pissed off expression.

"Guess I'm not old enough to knock people out like danna can." The androgynous child frowned and muttered, leaning over his back to reach his neck, sticking something cold and sticky under his turtleneck.

The shinobi immediately attempted to struggle, squirming against the cold substance. This earned a growl from the child, who responded by threatening him.

"Move and you die. I can make these sculptures explode to kill you." Deidara spoke in a hollow voice, completely serious.

He froze, complying with his captor's orders. Even then, he still managed to get a good look at the boy. For some reason, he felt as if he had seen him before, and yet the man was sure he had never known this kid in his life. "Y-you...I've seen you before..." The man managed out.

"Yeah, you probably recognize me. We _are_ from the same village you know."

"We...we are? What are you doing then?" The man's tone turned harsh, realizing quickly that all that was keeping him from escape was a little kid and his sculptures. Pulling an arm back, he pressed his hand to the floor and tried buck to the blond off his back, knowing well that he was probably stronger and had a size advantage.

"_Katsu_."

He flinched. Deidara grinned, a rush of power overcoming him once again. "That what I would say, if you don't listen to me." The boy let the grin fall. Even if he said the command, not pairing it up with his signature hand seal wouldn't detonate any of his bombs.

Deidara gazed down at the man's headband, holding a hand up to his to feel the metal. Face contorted into a pout, he sighed. "I wanted one of these before. They're so shiny and cool-looking."

The tiny weight shifted off his back, giving the Iwa nin room to breathe. In a sure voice, he ordered. "Get up."

The child hid himself under the light, making sure to keep himself mostly in the shadows for this. He watched with satisfaction as his plan began to unfold, the man stiffly getting up from his spot like a robot. Readying his next line, the boy rehearsed it in his head. It was inspired by some manga he had read, hoping that using a more villainous way of speaking would convince the shinobi to listen.

Hopefully Orochimaru didn't mind the extra attention. Even then, the blond didn't mind if the snake was caught.

"I'm going to make it simple. Go to the hall in front of us and look for a big group of people. Go to them and tell them that an Akatsuki is trying to get the hidden Iwagakure jutsu scroll. Run away, and I'll take off the bombs." Deidara instructed.

In a sign of acknowledgement, the shinobi rigidly nodded. He chanced a glance towards the bomb stuck to his thigh, an unusual lump against his pant leg. Slowly, he lowered his hand, hoping to rid of the explosive.

"_Don't_!" Deidara hissed and held up his hand seal as a warning. "If you do, I'll blow it up. I know when you touch it, I can feel it what it does. I don't feel pain though, I just know. And if I know that you removed it, I'll blow it up. It's small, but it could destroy you. I'm done."

The Iwa nin nodded once again, keeping his head rigidly straight. Having finished with the instructions, the child watched his toy soldier move forward, movements stiff and wary. This was no new method he came up with himself. Of course, he was only seven years old, if it weren't for his previous training and experience, the boy would have likely either given up due to lack of ideas or got himself killed trying. Deidara didn't know if he was simply down the latter, just a few minutes away from getting himself a game over. This method was spoken of in a lesson about extortion in relation to getting vital military info. However, this little act was less about getting information than it was to break someone out. Deidara had no intention of keeping their spy alive anyways. He wasn't like Sasori, who knew all the risks of killing and could probably point out ten-reasons why this wasn't a good idea.

Keeping about a cars distance from the spy, the child hid around corners, keeping a close eye on him. The boy kept a hand seal to his chest. He learned a while ago that he didn't need both hands to detonate his bombs, and if the plan went awry, there was always the possibility of just blowing the whole thing over and going with the flow.

Deidara furrowed his eyebrows in frustration. _He's walking too slow! Doesn't look like there's an emergency at all!_

"Psst! Don't forget! You're supposed to be telling people about the intruder!" Deidara hissed as quietly as he could.

"Um, right!" The ninja stuttered and began to run. The blond watched his spy dash down the hall, footfalls echoing. Knowing the chaos that may as well ensue, he decided not to pursue. If he was anywhere too near the situation, he would be caught. It was just a like a bomb trap, stay far enough from it that you could see the enemy and activate it, but just far away enough that you wouldn't get caught in your own contraption. There were exceptions to that rule as Deidara had the pleasure of discovering when he was little younger, but he didn't want to take risks, not of this measure.

Disappearing into the hall, Deidara settled for listening in on the scene. If things went correctly, there would be a rush of ninja to call in backup.

"An Akatsuki member's been found going after the hidden kinjutsu!"

Deidara heard the rather noisy response, a huge spike in yelling and hastily made orders before about four people went running. The child kept his head down and balled up on the floor, as to attract less attention. In these dark conditions, he would be little more than a silhouette. The less human it looked, the less suspicion it would cause.

The footfalls fell short, indicating that they had gone. Getting up, the boy crept closer to peer over the corner, only to be met with the disappointment of at least three shinobi at the door plus a few others that didn't look to be within the military. Deidara sat back, completely at a loss. This wasn't enough to send them all running? He'd played his card, but it wasn't effective enough. Sure, he could go in and try to fight them all, but the child was severely injured after fighting only two shinobi before. More than three? No way, especially not since he didn't want to blow a bomb in Sasori's face by accident.

Nearby, a snake lay content on the floor, gleaming eyes observing the boy's actions. Yellow eyes darted around the scenery, creating a visual for its master to see.

Orochimaru snickered, amused by the scene. Currently, he stood in a room, cornered by a squad of ANBU. Looking on towards his enemy, he raised his hand, scroll in his grasp. From the body expressions they made, the ninja seemed to be confused by his laughter, finding nothing funny. Of course they wouldn't know unlike the snake, who had just witnessed the efforts of a helpless seven-year old attempting to save his master. It was even more humorous to think that that person was his own partner, the man whom Orochimaru had grown to dislike.

It was so uncharacteristic of Sasori to do something like this. Surely he wasn't the only one to share this opinion, Kakuzu and Pein would have thought it strange as well. And now, the cold and merciless Sasori of the Red Sand was had gained such affection that Deidara thought he needed to be rescued? Absolutely hilarious.

"Ahaha...sorry. I was just thinking about something funny. Someone I know did something nobody expected, and now he's due to become the laughing stock of our organization."

_Perhaps I should help him out a little? Reward the little fledgling for his efforts._ Orochimaru smirked and pocketed the scroll. He still wanted it after all.

Making a snake and tiger hand seals, he thrust his arm forward. "_Striking shadow snakes!_"

Snakes erupted from his sleeve, quickly ramming into the wall along with the ANBU. One masked ninja jumped into the air, flipping to create momentum as he quickly plunged a blade into the head of one of the serpents.

Orochimaru quickly turned, eyeing a shinobi up above with his hands drawn together in another seal.

"_Fire style: Phoenix flower jutsu."_

The previous ninja retreated out the way, as to not be hit by the volley of flames that rained down from his teammate. Orochimaru's smirk widened, swiftly creating four more hand seals.

"_Fire style: burning ash_."

All snakes turned their heads away from the other ninja, facing flames head on to spew out a cloud of grey smoke. Upon contact, the ash ignited with a bright flash.

_BOOM_

* * *

_BOOM_

The ground trembled, causing a huge commotion. Deidara lifted his head, eyes wide in surprise at the sound. _What was that?_ He quickly peered over the corner. People darted down the hall. Doing the simple subtraction in his head, the group's number significantly lowered.

Stumbling out of his spot, Deidara ducked as the spy ran off with a bunch of other shinobi. Looking back, only two people remained. One popped into the room, yelling something unintelligible.

_BOOM_

Another tremor shook the ground, less massive shock waves coming after. The child made a determined face. He had gotten this far, and Deidara wasn't about to lose this opportunity.

Holding his signature hand seal up, he muttered the command word. Immediately, the spy's leg erupted in an explosion of blood and flesh, spraying the walls with red. An agonized wail followed, causing the other men at the entrance of the room to whip their heads over and dart over to aid him.

While distracted, Deidara ran over to the door, continuing to blow up the bombs one by one. The cries didn't distract him from his goal, turning into the room to see the familiar Akatsuki wriggling in his seat in attempt to test the ropes. A wave of relief came over the boy, realizing now that he wouldn't have to do things on his own anymore.

Unable to hold in his excitement, he exclaimed. "Danna!"

Sasori turned viciously at the boy, shadowed over eyes giving off a deadly aura. Deidara froze on the spot. "Dammit! Why didn't you leave?"

The words stung him, causing tears to blur his vision slightly. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. Him, run away? Why would he do that? What did the puppeteer expect anyway? "Why would I leave? They would have killed you!"

The reply failed to deter Sasori. "I would have been fine! All you had to do was wait you brat!" He shouted.

_Brat again?_ Deidara flinched, feeling the tears begin to show more in his eyes. Before he could get another argument out, a loud rumble occurred, creating a tremor larger than the ones before. His attempts to balance himself failed, tumbling onto his backside as soon as it happened.

He heard the puppeteer sigh loudly. "Whatever! Just cut the ropes!"

The child rolled onto his side and nodded, sucking up the tears. For now, he couldn't risk falling again, so crawling was the best he had. Deidara avoided making contact with his danna, simply laying low to the ground as he shuffled forward. Slipping a kunai out of his clothes, the blond held a hand on the puppeteer's wrists and began to slide the blade between two threads in the rope carefully. Slicing downwards, he wedged it between two tags. If he cut the tag, trouble would ensue. He didn't know what kind, but he was certain it would happen.

With a satisfying snap, the last string broke. Deidara backed away as Sasori's wrists separated and the puppeteer shot up from his seat, whirling around to glare at him.

"So you did make those explosions!"

Deidara tilted his head as he slowly tried to stand. "I only made small ones and they're far away! I don't know where the others came from!"

Sasori made a confused sound, raising a brow before his expression turned serious. He asked in a lower tone. "...Where's Orochimaru?"

Another tremor shook the floor, causing his subordinate to trip and catch his leg. Deidara whined slightly and clung to his cloak. "He said he was going to go get the scroll!"

Sasori growled. "Tch, of course!" He turned to his subordinate. "Why'd you even come? You should have gone with Orochimaru and waited for me to escape! I've done that before you know!"

The first sentence rung in the child's mind, sounding harsher than it was. Unable to hold them in now, he squeezed his eyes shut and clung to the leg tighter. A loud gulp caught the redhead's attention, looking on in alarm as Deidara's bottom lip quivered.

He held his eyes closed, mentally berating himself for crying. Ninja weren't supposed to show emotion, it was a written rule that he was taught. This wasn't the first time he had cried, and he didn't care that he wasn't an official ninja. Right now, he was shedding tears in front of possibly one of the strongest ninja in the land.

Suddenly, an arm wrapped itself around his shoulder, pulling the boy against the crook of the puppeteer's neck. Deidara began to sob apologies, hoping that he wasn't embarrassing Sasori too bad.

"Uh...look sorry okay? Just please...don't cry, don't cry!"

He heard him coo in probably the worst baby-voice he had ever heard. Regardless, the boy could sense he was trying, and decided to go with it. Deidara strained himself, nuzzling closer as to try to hide his tears. Unfortunately, the emotions got too strong and the tears flowed, wetting the Akatsuki cloak.

Sasori pushed Deidara away from him, letting the boy stand on his own. The child kept his eyes to the ground, hiding his face as best he could.

"We can't stay here, you got that Deidara?"

The blond nodded and wiped his face with his hand, sniffling.

"Good, now come on, let's go."

Immediately, the two began to run in the opposite direction. Sasori occasionally looked back to make sure that his subordinate hadn't gotten lost, still glued to his side.

The dark hallway suddenly spilled with light, the ceiling caved in as a gigantic scaled body collided into the building. Sasori jumped back, shoving the child back as well to stay away from it just in case it would attack. The snake remained limp, mouth agape in a silent cry while it laid there. Deidara blinked, watching the remaining skin and tissue snap and crackle against the tiny flames.

Without a word, Sasori bounded from the spot, hurdling over the snake with the little blond following in his footsteps. Day light gave way, revealing what looked like a battle scene. Two huge snakes towered above in the distance, each one wearing a red banner at the base of its jaw.

It was just as Deidara had imagined. A huge snake that crushed buildings surrounded by enemy ninja. Standing at the top was Orochimaru, his cloak flipping about in the chaotic wind. So these were the snakes that Sasori and Aoda had spoken of? Of all things that the child could have said, he would use one word to sum it all up: powerful.

A ninja bounded by, barely dodging the snake that lunged at it, snapping it huge jaws at the pest. The other one looked about, gazing around the scene with its master standing atop its head. A barrage of kunai's aimed at the snake's neck, only to be deflected by the thick scales. Tiny smoke bombs ignited, creating one huge cloud. In means of attack, a squad of shinobi willingly jumped into it in hopes that the distraction might buy some time. Unluckily for them, the snake wasn't deterred, rearing back to slice its tail into the cloud, knocking the ninja down like a swarm of flies.

* * *

Kurotsuchi bounded through the trees, Akatsuchi following closely behind. The girl made a shrewd stare at her friend.

"What're you doing here?"

"Don't say that because you're a ninja now. We should go back and tell the adults!"

She sneered at him and began to jump zigzags in the forest, even pulling down branches in hopes of giving the boy a twig in the face. Unfortunately, he was too persistent, easily dodging the traps and keeping on the girl's tail.

"Ugh! Beat it if you're not coming!" She snapped.

"And let _you_ go alone? No way!"

Kurotsuchi sighed. "Look, I just wanna see what's going on. You go tell gramps what's happening if you're so scared."

"I'm not scared!" Akatsuchi argued.

The girl groaned. "You're beginning to sound like big bro you know? Deidara."

"_I do not_!"

"Yeah, yeah, just go tell gramps. Someone has to."

* * *

**A/N: I have a few jutsu's in here during Orochimaru's part written in the English translation for dub. I'm not sure if that's okay with you guys. I mean, I already write the Rock village as Iwagakure or Iwa, so does it sound weird if I have the English jutsu? I thought that if I wrote in Japanese, I'd kind of either trust you to know what it means or write the translation at the bottom. *scratches head awkwardly***

**I mean, I guess I can't expect you to know what Katon: Hosenka no Jutsu(No kanji, Hiragana form: かとん ・ ほさんか の じゅつ) means. Just saying, I don't know crap about Japanese language, I just know 2 versions of their 'alphabet' and a few sentence structures. I got advice a while ago about how it would be better to use Japanese terms from the sub since that's what most people watch. Honestly, I just hope none of you mind. **

**Thanks to Anniegirl132!**

**Nice to meet ya!**


	25. The Wound

**The Wound**

They had only begun to cover ground. Sasori had once again withdrawn back into his puppet armour, causing the pair to move at a slower pace. It seemed a bit dangerous to be going at such a speed to Deidara, who was quite sure that no amount of stealth would secure them a good chance of escaping. For now though, things seemed pretty quiet. According to his danna, the guard around the Village should have dispersed from the sides of the village, probably to take on Orochimaru who had given them the good fortune of an excellent distraction. Like this, they could practically stroll around the village and make it back to where they had started.

Deidara couldn't exactly help but think about what had happened though. He'd never pulled something like this before, since he usually faced his problems head on or hid from them. His achievements weren't directly rewarded though, his prize being a scold from Sasori if anything. Of course, he earned a hug as well, granted a bad one but in the situation they were in, Deidara didn't blame him for failing even worse than he did back at the inn they had met in.

He wasn't fond of hugs. Unlike most children who had been raised affectionately by their parents, Deidara had lived a life of solitude, usually with material rewards. A embrace just seemed...out of place, awkward. Not only that, but he wasn't particularly fond of casual touch either, since most of the physical contact he had ever gotten was being chopped upside the head by Onoki or being thrown to the ground in training. Even then, there was a sort of humour to be had with the kind of embrace Sasori gave, since it practically embodied the idea of being out of place and awkward. There was no denying it, that's all they were, and Deidara somehow...didn't mind. The idea that the feeling was mutual was comforting really.

The walk was interrupted when the boy collided against the round backside of Hiruko, having not noticed it stop. Deidara stumbled back and rubbed his nose, gritting his teeth to hold in a wine.

"There's a squad up ahead. We should hide, follow me." Sasori whispered before ducking under a thick bush and a cluster of trees. As instructed, the blond followed in suite, pressing himself close to the elder's cloak while on all fours.

As predicted, up ahead a large group of ninja were grouped together. They seemed to be discussing a plan of some sort, and yet their words seemed out of earshot.

"Here's your first lesson of training. A ninja must be able to conceal themselves in one's surroundings, surely you know even that."

Deidara rolled his eyes. "I know."

"Right now we're outnumbered, and we're not here to pick a fight like Orochimaru. I repeat, killing isn't always the way to go. Leaving the bodies behind would be like marking our location."

"I know."

"We'll move around them. Be very quiet." Sasori emphasized.

"I know."

A skeptical look was sent towards the child. Hiruko seemed to accept it and shuffle towards the right, little boy in toe. Choosing to crawl on the floor, the blond kept a wary eye on the group. Leafy branches obscured his path, raking against his face and side. Normally, this wouldn't have been a problem, but Deidara had been out of practice for too long. In the days before, he'd be training nearly everyday, so taking such a long break from it all must have effected him somehow.

Deidara made a small grunt of annoyance. Pulling a bug out of his hair, he gazed ahead to see that Sasori had gotten farther away. A pang of fear rose within him, the feeling of security quickly fading with every inch that the space between them grew. In a vain attempt to catch up, he scrambled to his feet despite the rustling sounds that resulted.

_Snap_

Everyone froze. The child felt his face drain of colour, warily glancing past his shoulder to see that he had snapped a twig. He shifted his foot out of the way, suddenly realizing what he had just done.

On instinct, one of the ninja pulled out a kunai and aimed it in the boy's direction. Deidara could only stand, unable to react fast enough to dodge the quickly advancing blade. Rattling sounded as a shadow came over his face, the segmented tail of Hiruko quickly deflecting the kunai.

"_**You knew**, huh_?" Sasori snarled at the child, quickly standing between the squad and the boy.

"It's not my fault! It was too dark!" Deidara argued.

Suddenly, he froze again, hand mouths jerking violently in warning before a crack formed in the earth around them. It didn't take long for the child to realize what jutsu was being utilized, air pressure pushing him down as a platform of dirt pushed both into the air. Sasori quickly moved closer to the blond, watching a shinobi emerge from the ground with a sword raised in hand. Whipping his tail out, he quickly struck it down, ignoring the wails of pain that resulted.

Both jumped off the platform, landing on the ground unharmed. Upon the sight of them, a gasp arose from the enemy, stepping back.

"Akatsuki!"

Sasori frowned and turned Hiruko's head back to his subordinate. "If it's dark it should be easier to hide!"

"I'm_ sorry_!" Deidara snapped sarcastically.

One ninja stared directly at the boy with wide eyes. "Hey! I know that kid!"

"Sorry isn't enough, boy!" The puppet steered fully towards the source of annoyance, obviously ignoring the calls of the enemy ninja.

"What do I say then?"

Swiftly, the pair were surrounded, four ninja holding up their weapons warily. Deidara took a glance around, eyes wide with slight curiosity. He'd never seen this formation before in his training. A cry came from above, capturing the blond's attention as he quickly gazed upwards, noticing too late to react as a group of ninja had jumped into the air around them, swords in hand ready to plummet down on the pair.

Sasori easily spied the ninja, sweeping his tail with such power that it created a blast of air, easily, countering the shinobi above them. Deidara braced himself, holding both arms out defensively as to hold his ground against the massive gust. The boy grit is teeth, trying his best to stay on the floor without being blown off like all the others, hair whipping in the wind wildly.

Once the gust had settled, the boy recovered from the stance. Sasori seemed to finally notice the shinobi more directly, turning towards them with a menacing look. Deidara blinked, taking a moment to realize what they were readying themselves for. Once it clicked, the child smiled wide, face becoming sinister and twisted as he spied the ninja behind him, still thrown on the ground.

_This is my chance!_ The child smirked and whirled towards the other ninja, quickly having his hand mouth spit out an already made explosive. Deidara had made a bunch during his initiative to attempt to rescue Sasori, only using three to execute his plan. Now, he had about four left, and they would be useful. Spitting out two more, the child made sure to try and load a bit more chakra than the previous ones, instinctively gauging the levels of energy he used.

Sasori easily batted away another flurry of shuriken, cursing to himself mentally about his subordinate's lack of stealth skills. He seemed lucky here, since non of the ninja here seemed to possess any explosive skills. Sasori easily remembered the case with Jirou, knowing well that such destructive power mixed with jutsu could easily wreak some havoc on his art.

"_Katsu_!"

_BOOM_

A flood of ash smoke engulfed him, sending the Akatsuki flying. The next thing he new, Hiruko was laid on its side, having thrown around the puppeteer inside for a bit of a ride. Growling, the redhead shifted his weight and tugged at the chakra threads, rolling the puppet back onto its legs.

Coughing sounds quickly caught his attention, immediately looking over to confirm that it was the cough of a child's and not that of a grown adult. Sasori froze momentarily, the sight of a tiny body on the floor causing his mind to blank. Luckily, the next few seconds yielded good news, as the child's body jerked in time with the coughs, quickly sitting up without struggle, a sign that the boy had gotten off virtually unharmed.

"Brat!"

Deidara shook his head, letting the dirt and ash fall off of his head before facing his mentor. Hiruko showed no changes in expression, though the child could practically sense that the puppeteer within was seething.

"It was mistake! I put too much chakra-"

"I know that! Ugh, now I know for sure you haven't learned chakra control at all." Sasori seemed to stumble over his words, groaning in exasperation. The puppet closed its eyes in an almost pained manner, taking a moment to control his anger. "If a fluke like that is possible, it's better if you didn't use them at all! You're young and inexperienced! Stupid explosions like that aren't worth killing yourself over!"

The boy cringed at the tone, eyes cast elsewhere as he tried not to take the words too harshly. Opening his mouth to reply, he didn't have time to speak as another shinobi appeared by his back, arms wide ready to grab the boy.

_Clack..._

_Clack..._

_Clack..._

_Clack..._

Another scream rung out as the man twitched and fell limp against Hiruko's tail. Deidara blinked, breath hitched as he look down at his own cheek, which had apparently had narrowly missed striking his own head. Deidara stiffened, watching as some blood trickled down his cheek.

Sasori also seemed to notice the wound that he had caused, however hesitantly deciding to ignore the cut. Immediately, he reared the tail backwards, raising it far over the child's head for safety. The blond seemed to shake, eyes still wide in shock. Raising a hand up to his cheek, Deidara rubbed the skin and brought it to view, confirming that he had bled, a bright red stain on his hands. Sasori anticipated that the boy would look up at him, quickly averting Hiruko's gaze. He didn't want to see that frightened face.

"Stick close and don't move around. I'll handle this."

Deidara's expression changed, turning into a face that alienated the puppeteer. A mix of confusion and slight dread came over the innocent expression, forcing back the fear to nod hesitantly.

Stepping close to the puppet, Sasori reminded himself briefly of the boy's size and overall mass. Making mental calculations, the redhead hoisted the tail upwards, watching the remaining ninja stagger to their feet, unprepared for the explosion that had sent them flying straight after the gust of wind.

The ninja raised their weapons again, quickly turning to the Akatsuki and charging in different directions, dispersing as to surround Hiruko again. Upon making a full arc, ninja on opposite sides threw their shuriken, hoping that the sheer number of weapons would overwhelm the enemy.

Deidara braced himself again, pressing his back against the side of the shell as lightning fast lashes whipped about the air, deflecting the weapons with ease.

"_Fire style: Flame bomb_."

The ninja skidded to a halt, chest rising before the ninja spewed out a blast of fire. Deidara felt the heat reach him, only vaguely aware as something stiff wrapped around his body, sending him into the air.

Sasori landed the puppet away from the fire, gently placing the boy down on the ground behind him, tail unwrapping around the child back into the usual scorpion arc.

The after math of the jutsu had placed a dark spot in the grass, a gigantic bonfire burnt up the tree behind it, smoke rising into the air. The two remaining Iwa nin faced him again, raising their weapons.

"This is getting annoying. Now it's my turn."

* * *

Smoke rose above what used to be the buildings meant for containment. Towering above rose a single massive snake, head reared into the sky. Orochimaru breathed in the ash-ridden air, a sense of freshness overtaking him. It had been a while since he had been able to let lose like this, especially when the Akatsuki's puppet was staring him down 24/7.

Fires rose above the buildings, the fallen corpses of the other snakes went out with the smoke, the white clouds mixing with the flames. Taking a gander of Iwagakure, the Akatsuki could really appreciate the scenery. With all the spiralling rock towers, shooting up from the lowly forests below, the stone had begun to reflect the light of the sunset.

"Hmm...I guess I'm finished for now." Orochimaru brought the scroll up to his view, smile growing wider at the sight of it. He hadn't planned to really take this jutsu, thinking that this mission would turn out like any other. However, with the little nuisance glued to Sasori, the snake was granted more freedom with the redhead's hands tied.

Yellow eyes spied a lone fire in the distance, spreading slowly throughout the forest.

* * *

Sasori inspected one of the bodies, looking over each feature to see if it was material-worthy. With a scowl of disappointment, the redhead fed the body to the flames, allowing the flesh to disappear at the mercy of the heat. Absolute trash here, nothing notable about each ninja and even the ones he took interest in were too torn to be salvageable.

"See? You should leave it to me next time. We haven't even started training." Sasori said, knowing that the boy stood behind him.

"Hn."

"Just stick close when situations like this one come up, and I'll protect you and get the mission done. I have no idea of what your capable of, so I can't trust you in battle yet."

"Hn."

Such short replies immediately annoyed the redhead, thinking up some sort of reprimand for not acknowledging his words better. Turning back to his subordinate, Sasori got ready to lecture the child, only to realize shortly the damage he had done.

Deidara stood, staring blankly at the fire. Upon notice that his mentor was looking directly at him, fear sprang into his eye, averting his gaze towards the grass. His cheek was cut, along with plenty of other places on his body, including the torso and legs. Deidara seemed to leak blood, cuts along his body let out entire streams of it. The fire had lit up the darkness, gentle glow shedding light on what the blond truly looked like. It was hard to see the details in the dark, and the blood seemed to mix with the shadows.

"What the? What happened to you?" Sasori asked breathlessly, eyes wide. The little boy didn't answer.

Without a thought, the Akatsuki lowered Hiruko's tail, flat surface faced towards the child in a sign that he did not wish to harm him. Surprisingly, Deidara didn't remain still, but eyed the blade of the tail warily, stepping back once the tail was within half a meter of his shoulder. Deidara seemed shameful, knowing well that the puppeteer wouldn't like seeing the result of his inaccuracies.

The reality donned on Sasori, tail rearing back as he realized who had cut the child like this. He almost didn't want think about it, the very possibility that his skills weren't as accurate as he'd like them to be. His entire life had been devoted to killing and precise cuts, and yet he had never experiencing needing to use these precise movements to protect something.

"No way...I didn't..."

Sasori suddenly felt he need to try his hand again, lowering Hiruko's tail slowly onto the boy. He tried to press the flat end against the boy's shoulder, pushing up the blood as to try and capture it. Instead, the blade faltered and pressed into the delicate skin, creating another cut that spilled with more red liquid. The tail snapped back, Sasori unable to completely comprehend his lack of control. His heart began to pulsate, watching in horror at the harm he had just caused.

Deidara immediately sensed the inner turmoil that the puppeteer was experiencing, keeping dead silent as he brought his hand up to his newly formed wound, applying some pressure as to stop the bleeding. He had grown used to pain after these past months, a single cut didn't scare him anymore.

The flame roared in the distance, fluctuating as the wind blew it towards Hiruko, though not quite close enough to burn him. Both stood for a moment, an explosion of white smoke appeared, revealing Sasori in his more honest form.

In attempt to wipe the look off of his master's face, Deidara forced on an innocent smile, straining to make eye contact with the redhead. Mustering up a happy voice, the blond attempted to lighten the mood.

"It's okay, danna! It doesn't hurt a lot...it's just a small cut...I mean..."

Deidara trailed off, watching his master's face fall from shock into a more calm expression, passing that to become more sullen. Sasori's eyes lidded, sauntering over to his subordinate before kneeling down to match the blond's height. Hovering a hand over the boy's shoulder, he wordlessly healed the wound, making sure to be as gentle as possible.

The seven-year old gulped, observing the blood fade and the wound close. Once finished, he looked up at his master, who kept his eyes averted, avoiding the child's gaze. One by one, he moved on to the next wound, keeping the process slow and steady.

"I'm sorry."

Deidara blinked in surprise, staring straight at the puppeteer. He made an enquiring sound, indicating that he wasn't sure of what the redhead had just told him.

"I'm sorry."

* * *

**A/N: Short one this time, I planned on having a little something in this chapter but thought it better fit with the next chapter. Next chapter is the last one before the three year timeskip, so yeah. **

**I'm also currently working on another story at the moment called 'Akatsuki Mission: Infinity'. I've noticed that the Akatsuki usually don't get a good adventure themed Fanfiction often(they're usually romance as I've found) so I decided to do one! I made it so it could perhaps tie as similar to the Naruto Movies. It's a two-arc story that will involve every member of the Akatsuki and whole lot of fighting and action. The moral is generally about the idea of identity and what defines a person different from another individual. When it has a good foundation finished or it's complete, I'll post it!**

**Thanks to Anniegirl132 for being my Beta!**

**Nice to meet ya!**


	26. Love You

**Love You**

Night began to settle in. Deidara landed on the forest floor, hair bang tucked behind his ear as to adjust to the low light. The soft glow of the moon appeared to give objects a blue hue, easily identifying them apart from each other.

Deidara kept both eyes peeled, slightly more sharp in his right eye due to the conditions. He froze when an owl hooted in the distance, reflective pupils turning towards him in an angle that would have been impossible by human standards. Of course, Sasori wasn't exactly human, so the child mused himself to think that the puppeteer could make an easy impression of the bird. Speaking of him, the two had agreed to split up. The redhead had instructed him sternly after healing his wounds, that it would probably be better to remain distanced from each other as so he could deal with any ninja by himself and the boy could run.

The owl blinked, bright eyes glinting off the moon. It puffed up, stretching its neck to a strange length before snapping back to its usual position. It ruffled its feathers, giving the bird the appearance of scales before it flew off.

Deidara stared at the branch for a second, a moment of sheer wonder. He'd never been out at night before, so he'd never been able to stay up long enough to see the owls come out. A truly magnificent species of bird, round faces and small beaks giving them a unique appearance compared to all others he'd known. From here, he'd only read about them in books he found in the Tsuchikage's library, the one about wildlife in the Land of Earth. However, he'd only ever been interested in boars, considering how they were often the ones that Deidara ended up being rammed into by. He always had to keep running or take shelter in a tree.

_Oh! Right...I'm supposed to keep going..._Deidara gulped and turned back to his path, ready to bound off again into the forest. By now, he'd assumed Sasori knew where the nearest exit was, and considering the sudden silence that came over his danna, he'd rather not make sure.

The soft glow began to fade; catching the seven-year old's attention. He blinked and looked upwards, noticing as a large dark cloud began to move over the moon.

Footfalls sounded behind him, bringing the boy to his senses as his hand mouths began to loll about in warning. He swirled behind him, watching as a humanoid silhouette jumped out of a bush. Deidara grit his teeth and pulled out a kunai of his own.

_KLANG_

He successfully countered the attack, both kunai blades screed as tiny movements were made. The enemy pushed the kunai against his own, but the blonde didn't jump back, putting in some pressure himself. _I can match his strength! Does that mean..._Deidara squinted his eyes, trying to get a better look at his opponent. Uselessly, all he saw was a faint outline. His eyesight relied on the light to bounce off of objects. With no moonlight, he was as good as blind. _But he can't see either then._

"Guess you got a little stronger didn't ya? Big bro?" A young feminine tone enquired. Deidara's eyes widened recognizing the voice. His hand mouths jerked again, signaling to the boy to get away. In response, he made one final thrust, creating a small spark as he flipped into the air, stumbling his landing a bit due to the darkness. He made a fighting stance again, holding his kunai up at eye level as he fished the pouch tied to his pants, chewing some clay up.

The cloud continued to move over the moon, the light once again peeking through as it the mass finally passed. Deidara watched in intense anticipation as the light once again reached his eyes. A girl about his age with short black hair stood before him, wearing shorts and chain armor around her legs. The light reflected off her forehead piece, the metal glinting proudly, indicating that it was brand new.

Deidara however, remained unfazed. This was no unknown ninja; in fact, he knew this one very well. After all, they used to live together with the Tsuchikage.

"Kurotsuchi..." He muttered.

Her eyes brightened, happy to hear her name uttered. "Hell yeah! You remember me!"

"Of course I do. We used to eat dinner together." The blonde frowned, eyes beginning to lose a bit of emotion and glazed over. "You dug me out of a hole."

The girl pouted and dangled her arms, still gripping to her kunai as he she acted disappointing, blinking a few times to emphasize that she was on the verge of tears. "It's been so long and that's what you have to say?"

"I blew up the village. I killed someone." Deidara pointed out.

"Duh! You get into trouble every other week!" Kurotsuchi remarked, quoting herself from a long time ago. "But now I'm a genin." She made a confident smirk. "Too bad Akatsuchi can't be here."

Deidara made a determined face, readying himself for the next attack.

The kunoichi pulled her blade back, throwing at the boy to force him to either dodge or counter. Deidara chose the latter, immediately deflecting the blade to remain still enough that he could chew his clay with the least time. Kurotsuchi jumped into the air, weaving hand signs. Her mouth puffed up, filling with water.

"_Water style: water trumpet_."

On instinct, the blonde quickly jumped into the safety of the trees. The girl cupped her hand around her mouth, giving her the appearance of playing a trumpet. Water jetted out of her hand, striking the ground with surprising strength, cracking the floor.

Deidara stood there for a moment, easily dodging when the water trumpet was guided upwards, slicing the branch he jumped from. In attempt to lose her, he propelled himself into the darker forest, knowing that he had the upper hand in a dark environment. As long as the moon covered over again, he would likely be able to see more in the darkness than his old colleague would.

Kurotsuchi wore out the jutsu, making a knowing smile. She knew this tactic. Deidara may have been creative with clay but repetitive when it came to technique in battle. She was excited to see him again, to test her own skill against the boy. The one whom she was forced to look up to, was now her enemy. _Bring it on Dei!_

Both children bounded into the forest. Deidara fell back into a shrub, wincing slightly as a branch scratched his neck. He lay low, hoping to avoid a fight and escape without trouble. This hope was dashed as another jet of water hit the shrub, Deidara skidding away from the plant. He glared at the girl.

The blonde tried to look more confident, creating a crooked smile despite the frustration that rose within him. He didn't want to see her, not after everything that's happened with the Akatsuki. "Is that all you can do? That water trumpet thing?"

"You couldn't even perform a simple hidden mole before!" Kurotsuchi laughed, earning a flustered look from the other child.

"Shut up! I'm better than that stupid jutsu!" Deidara exclaimed and jumped into the air along with her.

A flurry of shuriken was directed towards the boy, quickly dodging them before being struck again by Kurotsuchi's blade. She quirked a brow, edging him on. It wasn't a sadistic look like he received from Jirou, but a more friendly approach. "You sure?"

Kurotsuchi twisted her ankle around the blonde's, holding him in locked position as they fell together. Deidara struggled, trying to get free while the girl weaved some more signs.

"_Lava style: quicklime jutsu_!"

_Lava style? Her Kekkei Genkai!_ Deidara glanced over his shoulder, eyes widening to see a grey substance splatter all over the floor beneath them. The quicklime spread throughout the area, creating a trap beneath them both. He made a hasty look at Kurotsuchi. "You know, you're gonna get stuck too!"

She turned to him and winked. "If we're stuck together, I can watch you while you're trapped! Good strategy huh?"

The two plummeted towards the floor, hitting the quicklime with a splat. Kurotsuchi sunk both of their feet into the substance, getting them nice and stuck. She turned to her old friend, ready to make another statement.

_POOF_

_What!?_ Kurotsuchi wriggled in the quicklime, what previously was Deidara was now a rotting piece of log that fell over into the grey matter. She grunted in frustration, face contorted in a scowl as she glared up to see the blond up on a branch, feet hopelessly plunged into the hardening quicklime.

"Nice, but it needs to be better to beat me!" Deidara laughed, pulling his hand from his pouch. _If she's gonna use Lava style, I'm gonna use my own style!_

He stood up with his head held high, holding a hand out. The palm mouth grinned as the boy swiped the air, a line of saliva coated bug sculptures flying towards the girl. Kurotsuchi cringed at the sight of the mouths. "Ew." She weaved her hands and faced them to the floor. "_Earth style: Earth dome_."

Deidara made a yelp of surprise, knowing exactly what was going to happen as he quickly jumped to a high vicinity in the trees for safety. As expected, the ground cracked in an arc shaped line, rising from the ground quickly to form a dome and protect her from the bombs.

_Damn! I have no choice! Those ones don't last long!_ The boy held up his signature hand seal, seething at the idea of wasting clay. "Katsu!"

_BOOM_

_BOOM_

_BOOM_

* * *

Sasori staggered to a halt, eyes shooting up above the trees to see dark smoke erupt from an area further off. He cursed to himself, angry that the boy had gotten himself into another predicament. Turning heel, he began to dash in the direction of the explosion.

_Stupid brat!_

* * *

Kurotsuchi watched eagerly as a boulder hit the hardened quicklime just a few inches in front of her. A large creak sounded, a gigantic fissure forming in the rock that ran directly towards her feet. Upon reaching her, the kunoichi wriggled herself free, breaking the mold and escaping the dome that had caved in on her.

Both landed on opposing branches, heaving steady breaths. Deidara made a genuine smile, adrenaline rushing through his veins. It's been a long time since he felt like this, not since killing that guy for insulting him. "This is...this is pretty fun, hm?"

"Yeah..." Kurotsuchi lowered her head, slightly worn out by the energy drain. She lifted herself again and looked at the blond, eye closed in a friendly manner. "Big bro...you're gonna get a bad beating after all this is over by gramps..."

Deidara considered the idea for a moment, imagining coming back to Onoki, his angry aura radiating off him before the boy received a fierce chop to the cranium. He irked at the scene. "No way, I'm not going back."

She pouted again. "Oh you will, and when we get you back, I'm gonna bring you straight to grandpa!" The kunoichi straightened herself, putting a hand on her hip. "Too bad I guess. Your explosion release is pretty important to the village. Gramps would have made you a walking mascot with the booms you make."

His eyes narrowed, a nerve popping. "Oh so now you compliment my art!"

"Art?" Kurotsuchi spat. "Big bro, I'm not into that stuff. I like more important things, like actually training to be an ninja! You used to sleep all day! Admit it! You're just a lazy couch potato!"

"_I AM NOT_!"

* * *

A pair of eyes watched from a safe distance. Sasori stared at the girl, recognizing her occupation as a ninja from Iwagakure. His hand stayed poised, ready to defend his subordinate at a moment's notice. That girl...they seem to know each other.

"_Lava style: Quicklime jutsu!_" She weaved the rabbit, ox, dog and snake, cupping her hand around her mouth to spit out a blob of wet quicklime. Deidara moved out of the way, keeping his distance.

_A lava style user? Hm...she could be something._ The redhead blinked in surprise as his subordinate actually laughed joyfully, as if he was having fun. Were they just playing? The situation quickly got more serious as the puppeteer considered the idea that the boy had been planning to return to Iwagakure, and that this whole fight was a ploy.

The girl laughed as well, enjoying the fight before engaging in taijutsu on a branch before both children locked themselves in a kick, bounding back to avoid the next shot, both of which must have anticipated from each other. Sasori frowned, an emotion he could only describe as betrayal swelling up somewhere within his heart case. Why were they laughing like that? Their blows seemed genuine, the two were obviously trying to harm each other and they were having fun? Training was one thing, but those two were enemies...they should be serious!

The chakra strings in his body tightened, pulling his limbs taught. He couldn't keep speculating about this. Whatever trap was possibly waiting for him, he could handle. Sasori needed to know and know right now who this boy devoted his loyalties to.

* * *

"You're taijutsu's still pretty terrible." Kurotsuchi noted while side kicking the other child. The boy held up both arms to protect himself, talking the attack and skidding back along the ground.

Deidara recovered and sidestepped another attack. "Don't get a lot of time to practice now."

"What do you mean?"

The girl suddenly crouched, holding out two fingers before springing up towards the boy's head, attempting to stab his eyes. He quickly backed off, avoiding the attack by a few inches. Deidara quickly put his hands to the floor, doing a cartwheel to kick the girl in the stomach. The momentum of the flip added power to the kick, sending the genin to collide into a higher branch.

"I mean, there's no time to do it." Deidara answered simply, producing a bomb on the spot and throwing it at the other child.

Kurotsuchi dropped from the branch, back already taken the brunt of the force. Catching herself in the air, she pulled out a kunai and attached a smoke bomb to it. The kunai was thrown directly at the sculpture, piercing it and sending it back towards the boy.

_KLANG_

The smoke bomb exploded, creating a white cloud. Kurotsuchi landed on the floor and stumbled back, having sworn that she saw something move in front of Deidara and deflect the blade.

"Who is she?"

A tail swiped the air, blasting the smoke away from the pair. Hiruko stood before him, dead eyes staring menacingly at the other child.

"Danna!"

Kurotsuchi's eyes widened, the very sight of the intimidating puppet causing her to shrink away. She observed the situation, suddenly realizing what the blond had just called the new arrival.

"D-deidara...who's that?" She stuttered in a low tone, backing away slowly. A sharp glare caught her eye, making the girl freeze in fear, intent to kill clear.

Sasori growled, turning his icy look onto the boy. "You were having an awfully good time fighting. Do you know her?"

The blonde gulped, submissively nodding. From what it looked like, the puppeteer seemed angry, and the child would rather that it was not directed on himself. The redhead frowned, briefly reminded of the Jirou incident. Deidara seemed to know a lot of people who came after him, and he apparently knew this other child too. He turned back to the front. "So whose side are you on?"

Deidara blinked, unsure of what his danna was talking about. "Huh?"

"Who are you with? Your old village or the Akatsuki? Them or us?" Hiruko's glare turned black. "If you're with them, know that I will treat you like the rest."

He stood for a moment, mouth slightly open. Immediately, he shook his head to get himself out the trance, sending a weak glare towards his mentor. "I'm with you! I told you already!"

Hiruko seemed to consider the answer, before hovering his tail over the boy, poison dripping off the end while the steel glinted off the light. Sasori's hand shook, something within him commanding him to quit scaring the poor child. They'd already established, that the puppeteer did not wish to hurt him, but now, he wasn't so sure anymore. "...Are you completely sure?"

Deidara didn't waver at the harsh tone, mouth set in a straight line. "Yes, danna!"

Both locked gazes for a few seconds, Sasori looking for a hint of a lie or hesitation within the boy. Finding none, he swung Hiruko's head in the direction of their enemy, tail pointed away from his subordinate. "Good, because once you're in the Akatsuki, you can't leave."

The tail reared up and began to slink over the puppet, as if contemplating what he should do to the girl. He could stab her right then and there, but he felt an extreme dislike towards her. Should he strike her with a puppet with a different poison? Was her Kekkei Genkai worth it? He already had a few puppets with the same release.

"I heard it somewhere over there!"

Everyone's heads shot to the left, the voice sounding dangerously close to the area. Sasori shifted his puppet and bumped into Deidara, urging him back from the sounds. "We're going."

The bulky puppet jumped from the tree, little boy following in suite. Kurotsuchi quickly caught sight of the two try to escape, moving to her feet in pursuit. She was the Tsuchikage's granddaughter, so she had to be able to do something. Even as a genin, she was still technically a fully-fledged ninja, and a relative of a Kage, she needed to do more than wait and run like Akatsuchi.

_I won't let them get away!_ She weaved her hands again, using the last bit of her chakra for the last jutsu. Making the same motion as before, Kurotsuchi spit out a blob of quicklime, trying to trap at least one of the pair.

Deidara looked back, gritting his teeth at the persistent shinobi. His hand spit out a clay spider, throwing it over his shoulder towards the quicklime. Bounding off a high set stone, the blonde made his signature hand seal. _Like hell I'm going back there._

"KATSU!"

* * *

The moon shined over the horizon, peaks of the mountains reflected its light. Orochimaru continued on his path, already a few hundred meters from the outskirts of the Land of Earth. He was in a good mood, definitely a good mood. He'd gotten Sasori to peel his eyes off of him for a while, and the snake had finally gained a little freedom. He'd joined the Akatsuki in wait, but what he awaited hadn't come.

A slipped a scroll into his hand, gazing down at it with a satisfied expression, mouth tugged into a wide smile. At least he had gotten something to compensate for all that waiting. The brat's jutsu had failed to interest him significantly at first, since the snake figured that Sasori would have been breathing down his neck the entire mission as usual. However, the little child had actually managed to do something good, he got Sasori's attention and left Orochimaru with some legroom.

"Orochimaru."

The pale man paused, face twisting into a scowl. The scroll slid into his sleeve, hiding it from anyone's view. Orochimaru turned slightly, seeing his partner and the boy trailing right after him.

"Yes?" He hissed.

Hiruko shuffled up to the snake, regarding him. Deidara followed up from behind, observing the scene with a curious look.

"You weren't planning on giving that scroll to leader were you?"

The other Akatsuki tried to laugh it off, piercing gaze glaring daggers. "What you made think I would do that?"

Sasori thought for a moment, focusing on his partner before his tail whipped out, nearly striking at the blonde by accident. Luckily, Deidara managed to dodge it, stumbling back interpreting the action as a message to back off to a safe distance. The puppeteer berated himself in his head for his lack of control, briefly forgetting where the boy stood in relation.

"Give me the scroll."

Orochimaru complied, pulling out the object and tossing it over to the puppet. Hiruko's hand slipped out from under the Akatsuki cloak, catching it before retreating. "Come on."

Deidara moved to follow them before a sudden cry from behind nearly caused him to yelp. Turning around, the boy stood face to face with another person. Everyone looked on as an Iwa nin stumbled out of the forest, one arm completely blown off while part of his thigh seemed torn. The moonlight shone against the blood and sweat, creating a grisly scene. The man gulped and gasped, voice raspy as his blood splattered against the floor.

The blonde stared at the man's face, recognizing his features. That lifeless look in his eyes, empty of any sort of spark. He didn't think any human had the capacity to follow anyone for such a distance with such wounds, especially Sasori's spy.

"_You_!...what the hell...why..." The spy coughed, a blob of black and red liquid splattering the floor even more. He coughed again, squeaky breaths taking seconds longer than they should have. His eyes widened maniacally, turning to yell his heart out at them. "_YOU MADE ME A CRIMINAL! THEY THOUGHT I WAS WORKING FOR YOU! I HAD A FUCKING LIFE AND YOU FUCKING DESTROYED IT_!"

Sasori remained still. This scene wasn't a strange one, just as common as any other death. He wondered sometimes why people seemed to try to escape death so often, since they usually had done nothing worth their lives to prevent it. Sasori had turned himself into a puppet, a procedure that took years to finally gain enough experience to perform, and now he was eternal, immortal. These weak men remained flesh and blood, living within bodies that were doomed to failure and rot.

The Iwa ninja took a step forward, his ankle twisting with a sickening crack as the man fell to the dirt, crying out at the pain.

Sasori raised Hiruko's tail. "I'll deal with him."

"Wait."

The puppeteer frowned, turning the puppet's head towards his partner. Orochimaru smirked, eye narrowing with interest. "This ninja was your spy as well as a fellow citizen of Iwa, like Deidara used to be. Perhaps now is the time to know, whether or not your little whelp is loyal to us or not. Let him break the tie here."

Sasori glanced over to his subordinate, who had stepped back in horror at the scene. Of course, this man looked just as dreadful as all those other bodies they had seen at the abandoned laboratory. The blood was still there, and it was everywhere. Deidara might have seen his fair share of gruesome experiences, but it would take a while for even a trained shinobi to get used to this. Sure, the child had admitted his loyalty to the organization back at that fight, but...

"Brat."

Deidara blinked, eager to turn away from the man to look at his new master. Sasori put away his tail. "I know you already told me about it, but I want to see for real. As a subordinate of the Akatsuki, you will have to follow through with every order I give you. Iwagakure was where you were born, so I assume that you have some emotional ties with the village. However, in order to come with us, you'll need to sever those ties. I want you to demonstrate your loyalty to us."

The puppeteer gestured towards the man on the floor, letting the boy follow his gaze. "Kill him to prove that you have no remorse for the people of your village. It's customary to slash your headband, as a sign that you've abandoned your roots, so shall you to slash that man's headband. You can keep it as a sign that you've become a ninja; think of as your own personal graduation ceremony."

He absorbed the information, taking a few seconds to completely understand what the redhead had commanded him to do. Once it sunk in, Deidara nodded and made his way to the dying shinobi.

Deidara stared down at him, wondering exactly what his next victim was thinking right now. The Iwa nin gurgled and coughed out more blood, creating a pool on the floor.

Sasori watched his subordinate pull out a kunai, the blade glaring off of the light. The child kept his face hidden from him, back turned to the ones he claimed to serve currently. The boy knelt down by the head, raising the knife into the air slowly, but stopped.

For a second, the puppeteer interpreted it as hesitation. Was the blonde scared to do it? Surely he'd killed his own before, so it was more of a show if he did with his own two hands. Deidara was only a child, nearing his eighth birthday as he was told. He couldn't expect someone so young to be able to end another life in cold blood just yet, but it was something the Akatsuki required, and something Sasori would prefer of his new underling.

"Danna."

Sasori blinked. "What now? Hurry up already, we're going to be late."

The child flipped the kunai in his hand, facing the handle towards the dying man. His body didn't budge, but it didn't seem to be trembling in fear either. "Do I have to do it...with this?"

"Just kill him, do it however you want. His time running out, hurry."

Deidara turned his head, blank eyes looking at the kunai disdainfully. Sasori recognized that look, that glazed over pupil that he had after they left the mentally scarring room. The child's face showed disinterest at the blade. Slowly, his gaze locked on with Sasori's, the clouded stare began to clear, showing a whole other emotion. Deidara's mouth moved, moving up his cheek to create a sadistic smile. His eyes grew wide, excitement showing. "Good, cause that would be boring!"

The kunai was discarded and replaced with the blonde's own clay pouch. He fished the bag, letting his hand mouth chew up the clay. "Cause you know, I killed someone for insulting me before I left. I got angry and broke things afterwards, and I made the entire village go boom!"

Deidara made a crooked grin, molding his new sculpture in a more intricate form than before. This time it was an owl, not a bug, not a fish, an owl. It's round head and large eyes mirrored that of the owl he saw in the forest, a creature who quietly soared the skies and preyed on others. Ignoring the man's wails, Deidara shoved the sculpture in the man's mouth, pushing it back in his throat.

Afterwards, the boy sprang up, satisfied with what he did. Twirling towards his danna, Sasori noted how gleeful the child seemed, a light bounce in his step as he approached the two Akatsuki. He stood by the puppeteer's side and turned back to the shinobi.

"Since this was gonna be my graduation ceremony, I thought I'd make it really cool and meaningful. Bugs get up in the morning and owls get up at night...at least I think. But anyway, since I killed this way for the first time before, I want to do it again to celebrate!"

Sasori looked up at the new Deidara, a familiar aura coming off the boy. It wasn't unfamiliar but it was certainly unique, the lightness of it all. The puppeteer smiled and decided to remind him of something. "Don't forget the headband. You wouldn't want to lose it in the explosion."

Deidara's smile fell, taking his master's advice. "Oh yeah! Okay!"

Quickly, the little child dashed over to their former spy, untying the headband and grasping it in his own hands. The man screamed in protest, face turning a tinge of pale blue to indicate oxygen loss. Deidara ran back to the Akatsuki's side, using his kunai to scratch the Iwagakure symbol before tying it around his own head.

"Okay, all ready!" The child bounced, putting his hands into his signature hand seal.

* * *

_(Naruto Shippuden Movie 2 OST Track 28 - Bonds)_

Sasori shuffled along the path without Orochimaru. Leader had called for him, and requested that the snake make it to the nearest base now. The scroll could wait with the redhead, who had two more days to complete the mission.

Crickets chirped in the background, momentarily awakening the boy. Deidara trudged along the path, tired from all the activity of the day. His legs and feet ached, eyes barely able to stay open to see the increased distance between himself and his danna. It wasn't until the sound of his final collapse did it catch Sasori's attention.

Hiruko turned back, returning to the blonde. Deidara gazed up lazily while his hair was strewn about messily. "I'm tired..." He moaned.

"We'll rest around here then."

Sasori steered the puppet back in order to give the boy some room to get up. Unfortunately, it was worse than expected, as the child couldn't even get up due to fatigue. Sasori shook his head, looks as if he would have to carry him.

* * *

"Deidara."

The seven-year old cracked open his eyes, resting on Sasori's lap with a blanket pulled over his body. The soft glow of the oil lamp kept a good view of the puppeteer's face, blankly staring into the light in a trance of some sort. Deidara pushed up his headband, having refused to take it off since he didn't want to accidentally lose it.

Sasori's lips barely moved, his voice low and slightly solemn. "I know you're tired, but I want to ask you something."

The child shifted his head, turning his head up to the redhead. "Hm?"

Glass eyeballs reflected the flame, a blurry light dancing in his eyes in contrast to the dullness of them. "Do you...really want to stay with me?"

Deidara quirked a brow, as to ask why the puppeteer would ask the same question all over again.

"I don't mean the Akatsuki this time, you've proven that, but I'm talking about myself." He made a brief pause. "I've been protecting you this entire time, thinking that there was some sort of duty I was supposed to feel in doing so. However, I am dangerous, and I've already cut you while I tried to do that, protect. Do you really want to deal with that?"

Deidara nodded sluggishly, unable to think correctly due to his groggy state.

"As a ninja, it's already dangerous enough, I've seen loss. With me, it'll be even more dangerous, I can't even guarantee that I myself won't hurt you from time to time. Are you willing to deal with that? With me?"

The child's eyes were closed, Sasori's voice serving as some sort of lullaby to him. He nodded again. Finally, the puppeteer turned to look at the boy he had taken off the road, eyes softening at the sight.

"Because...you're like a..." The puppeteer stopped himself, turning away again. "...To me."

Deidara opened his eye again, frowning as if to ask whether the redhead was gonna keep prattling on for the whole night. Sasori leaned back, shaking his head. "Never mind, just go to sleep, rest brat."

A smile found its way onto the seven-year old's lips, closing his eyes. Sasori tried to get back into his thoughts, however interrupted as his torso moved involuntarily. Looking down, his heart sped up to see the tiny blond snuggling up to him, trying to get warm against the cold air of the coming winter.

"Love you." He murmured, finally finding a position to sleep peacefully in.

Sasori sat there, shocked for a moment at those words. A wind blew on the clearing, causing the oil lamp to cease its flame. The area became dark, the light of moon filtering through the leaves. Sasori lidded his eyes. "Damn it..."

"Ninja aren't supposed to say those kinds of things you stupid brat."

* * *

**A/N: Hello there! After this chapter, we're having a timeskip! I finally got part 1 of this damn fanfiction done! Now, to get to the more exciting stuff. I can finally stop worrying about how I'm writing Deidara's dialogue too now because he'll be older(I keep thinking I'm writing him with a speech pattern that's too complex for his age, which I probably am).**

**Thanks to Anniegirl132 for being my Beta!**

**Nice to meet ya! Please Review if you'd like! I'm really wondering what the fanfiction has gone since the beginning! Good or bad, we're going somewhere!**


	27. A New Arrival

**A New Arrival**

_3 Years Later_

"Katsu!"

...

"Eh?" Deidara cracked open an eye. The bird remained on the floor, head faced up towards him instead of blown to smithereens. The blonde frowned shook with frustration, gritting his teeth angrily before finally snapped, stomping the floor in a burst of rage.

"_AAAGH_!"

* * *

"A dud?"

The boy nodded, now eleven years of age. He'd been with Sasori for three years now, perhaps a few months in as well. Through thick and thin, things have been going somewhat smoothly, the boy had begun to really develop some skills, and these skills had yet to disappoint the puppeteer, or at least, he thought so. The younger reached up just past his elbow now, granted still short.

A puppet lay on the grassy plain, rested on top of a scroll. Sasori was seated next to it, shadowed over by a tree. He'd shooed his subordinate away to train by himself, some experimenting hobby that Deidara thought was extremely entertaining. The redhead didn't think the same as him, but at least it kept him busy and passed the time.

Deidara rolled a ball of clay along the ground despondently, repeating the motion with no real figure in mind. He sat on the floor, hands no longer bound by gloves. "Yeah, it's never happened before. They always explode when I tell them to."

Sasori didn't spare a glance, working away at getting to pieces of a puppet to fit together. He thought for a moment, then suggested something. "Maybe something's troubling you and you can't concentrate enough."

"Nothing's wrong." The boy admitted. "I was actually having fun until the duds showed up."

The two pieces continued to be pressed together, the slots not quite fitting into the joint. The elbow wasn't working out too well, but the redhead feared that he might make the joints too loose and fragile if he widened the gap. Taking the chance, he reached towards the corner of the scroll, picking up some sandpaper and began to work the knob a little.

"All the other ones worked, but I'm kinda scared that's gonna happen again." Deidara moped about.

_Click_

"There we go." Sasori spoke to himself and put down the limb. His head made a 180, facing the little boy behind him. Deidara looked up, expecting the other to say something.

"Maybe it's that new technique you made."

He quirked an eyebrow and picked up the clay ball and fed it to his hand. Thinking up a quick design, he waited about half a minute before spitting out the result, one of his old bugs from years ago. The blonde plopped it onto the ground and made a hand seal. "This?"

The bug erupted in smoke, its form remaining exactly the same. The bug began to twitch, then jumped up and twirled on the spot, running in face-paced circles.

Sasori stared at it, a smile tugging at his lips. This jutsu allowed Deidara's clay figures to move about as if they were alive. It was a development made when the boy began to feel a little left out. Apparently, he got jealous of his puppets and wanted to try himself, but it was all too obvious when he actually attempted it that the blonde had no skill in puppetry whatsoever; not to mention explosion release chakra was capable of destroying his puppets if threads were ever to be formed properly. Deidara produced the jutsu in an attempt to imitate Sasori's puppets. The training for chakra control took about a year but it finally worked. Now, the child wasn't required to throw them into the air, since the clay sculptures were easily capable of moving on their own like little minions of the boy.

Sasori really liked his art afterwards, finding the child's simplistic style to be aesthetically pleasing in appearance and childish, matching Deidara perfectly. However, the idea that these sculptures were made simply to be destroyed turned him off. Though the child could create them within seconds nowadays, they were beautiful so he wondered why on earth Deidara so willingly blasted them to pieces. He figured it was just some sort of explosion obsession, and that Deidara wasn't actually all that concerned with how his sculptures looked. To him though, they were cute.

"That takes quite of a bit of concentration to work doesn't it?"

Deidara squinted his eyes and tilted his head, humming. "I guess..."

The puppeteer turned back to his work. He gazed up at the top of the tree, eyeing a chipmunk. _I wonder what time it is_. He fished out a pocket watch from his cloak, flipping it open to look at the time.

The eleven-year old crushed the little bug, letting his right mouth chew on it to keep it behaved. All these years and it still was pretty hard to keep quiet, especially recently. Deidara was briefly reminded of a joke that Sasori told him, about how his hands were going through puberty, despite them being biologically mature.

His mentor stood up, holding up a hand seal that caused the puppet to erupt in smoke, kanji reappearing on the scroll.

Deidara got up as well. "Danna?"

"We should get going. There's a place I need to be, the Akatsuki are meeting."

"A-all of them?" The boy enquired. He'd never met the entire Akatsuki before. He'd only ever known Pein, Konan, Sasori, and Kakuzu. Everyone else was a mystery, members he had no clue of. Considering the ones he'd met, they probably going to be just as scary. They had never gone back to Amegakure since they had left, finding no need to take shelter there. They were good enough on their own.

Sasori began to pack up his things, sealing everything back into a scroll and discarding it in his cloak. He started to walk down the hill, retreating from the shade of the tree. The boy followed in suite, always making sure to keep directly behind the puppeteer.

"Am I gonna meet that Zetsu guy you keep talking to?"

"Maybe."

"What's he look like?"

"You'll know when you meet him, hard to miss."

Deidara frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?" Deciding to change topics, the little boy chanced his way to the redhead's side, wide eye looking up at him. "Why is everyone meeting up?"

"We're welcoming a new member."

The blonde jumped in surprise, unsure of how to take the news. He barely knew the Akatsuki as it was, since it really seemed to him to just be this organization that Sasori worked for and stuff. Despite all of the serious things that happened in the past, the Akatsuki rarely came up anymore, since all the organization seemed to change in their lives was what mission they were supposed to complete, and quite often, those missions didn't have any specific time limit. Sasori rarely even talked about the Akatsuki anyway, and Orochimaru just plain disappeared from their lives.

"D-do you know them? The new member."

Sasori didn't answer and kept walking, eyes fixed on the path ahead.

_I'll take that as a no._

"So...who haven't I met? Other than that Zetsu guy."

"The Akatsuki doesn't have a lot of members, so the only one you haven't met so far is Kisame Hoshigaki."

Deidara was suddenly interested, more than before. He leaned in, cuing the redhead to begin his explanation.

"The Akatsuki work by having each member partnered with another member to form a two-man team. Kisame doesn't have a partner, though he may be temporarily working with Orochimaru since he's not with us. He's not going to be hard to miss either, just think of a humanoid fish. A fish on land with legs."

_A fish...on land..._The boy did as commanded, and immediately irked at the image. He imagined a man in an Akatsuki cloak turn around to face him, his entire body normal except for his hand and feet being fins as well as his head being that of a fish, goldfish to be specific. The fish gaped at him, gills moving as it did. _Th-that's not normal..._

"He has a sword too, Samehada is its name I think."

_With a sword._ Deidara mustered up a katana in the fish's fin, trying to wrap his mind around how a fin could hold the handle of the blade.

All in all, he had a goldfish-headed Akatsuki robed humanoid, a sword sheathed by its side. Behind the back of the robe would peek a fish tail, wiggling as it walked in a goofy waddling manner. The thought was interrupted when the child realized something. _Wait...fish can be ninja?_

"Oh, we're meeting Orochimaru too?"

Sasori jumped over a large log, turning back to wait for the child. It took a while but eventually, he saw the little boy jump on top of it, wobbling on the spot before he finally gained some balance. Being younger, he couldn't jump as high as a distance as the elder, so scaling the log would take a bit longer.

"Yes. He's coming too. He still scares you?"

Deidara scoffed, tilting his head up in the air arrogantly and swayed his hips. "Scared? Please, my sculptures can move now, he's the one who should be scared of me! I'm stronger."

The blonde jumped down beside his danna, walking past his head held high. Sasori smirked, eyes following the prideful little bomber. "Careful. Ninja who say things like that are usually the ones who die first."

"Oh yeah?" He blinked, immediately regretting those words and covered his mouth. "Crap, I jinxed it..."

"Well, if he does kill you, it'll give me a good reason to finally silence him." Sasori mused.

"Danna, that doesn't help..." Deidara whined, giving the redhead a pleading look.

The pair stepped onto a wide empty cobblestone stairway, leading uphill to a grey temple with blue shingles at the very top. Each step had at least two meters in distance from each other, making it less tiring to climb. The child followed his master's gaze, also eyeing the temple.

_So that's it._ Deidara thought, then turned to his companion. Hiruko was donned onto the puppeteer, still far larger than the boy despite how much he'd grown.

Continuing up the steps, the little boy looked up as they passed several stone Buddha statues and small well-kept shrines. The pathway lead up to a large wooden gate painted in a bright red, a torii. The pathway finally ended at the top, opening up to a wide courtyard with some wooden fences to line the edges. In the middle, a small stairway lead up to the inside of the temple, a familiar blue-haired Akatsuki stood at the entrance.

Konan regarded the boy, giving him a good look from head to toe as they approached, her face remaining flat. "Welcome, Sasori. The new member will be arriving shortly."

"Hm." Hiruko grunted in response, shuffling up the steps before he disappeared into the temple.

Deidara followed in suite as he always did, but staggered back as Konan blocked his path, standing before him. He made a puzzled expression, glancing up at the woman. "Only Akatsuki members are allowed past this point. You may wait outside of the temple."

The monotone voice created no room for argument. Obediently, the child backed away from the steps, pouting and slouching at her in hopes to get some sort of exception. She only made a tiny smile at the boy's antics, turning her back on him. "It will only be a little while. Sasori will be back very soon."

He groaned loudly in response, hiding his face in his hair in attempt to gain some pity.

Konan sighed. "Tell you what. If anyone strange is seen nearby the temple, you have permission to come in and inform us."

He waved his arms around, moping still at the assigned task. Nodding slowly, he turned on his heel and headed back towards the gate, muttering complaints under his breath just loud enough that the woman could hear him.

Konan shook her head and walked into the temple, disappearing down the hall.

Deidara straightened and looked over his shoulder, pout still visible. The courtyard seemed so large an empty now, strangely foreign to him. Without Sasori somewhere within sight, the blond felt a little lost without him.

"Guard duty? Doesn't sound fun." Deidara mumbled and sauntered around the yard for a few minutes.

Standing by the Torii, he leaned out and gazed down the cobblestone steps only to find no one but a few common birds. Exhaling, he stepped away from the gate and looked back at the temple. It seemed pretty old, yet well-maintained. The shingles weren't cracked but they did have some moss patches growing.

_Ugh...this is so boring._

* * *

A total of four men stood in the middle of the room, each one adorning an Akatsuki cloak. Creaks emitted from the wooden floor as they mingled, catching up on things that the others had experienced. Konan observed from afar, standing near the door in wait for the whole thing to finish and bring Pein back to Amegakure.

Sasori remained on one spot, not very eager to talk to anyone here. Though he tried to ignore it, the puppeteer could tell that the snake was looking at him, piercing gaze burning a hole through his wooden shell. Nothing he wasn't used to at least.

He caught Pein's gaze, both looking at each other for a moment. They had nothing to speak about, since the man had already heard enough from mission reports. He broke the stare when another approached him, looking up to expect Orochimaru.

Instead, an extremely tall Akatsuki stood, identified by his blue skin and large bandage-wrapped sword. Shark eyes looked down on him, sending a toothy smirk. "Hey. I heard you have some brat following you around from Zetsu."

Sasori felt displeased at the news. Zetsu had been spreading the word huh? Before you know it, he'd be the laughing stock of this entire organization. He wasn't willing to discard Deidara because of it but...well, his reputation was a pretty important part of his life.

With no answer given, the shark tried to force the conversation onto him. "Is it true?"

"He's a subordinate."

The man's grin fell and he shifted his weight. "Oh, so that's all."

"Pretty much."

The grin returned to the other as he gazed out the front of the room, sunlight pouring in from the other entrance. Beyond, a few houses were visible, a large dirt path leading out into the countryside. "So, what do you think my new partner's gonna be like?"

"Who knows? Whatever the case though," Sasori paused and subtly gestured towards Orochimaru. "_He_ arrived at all."

"Heh, you really don't like that guy do ya?" He whispered.

"What was your first clue?"

* * *

_Anyone...somebody show up!_

Deidara swung upside down from a tree; feet attached himself to the branch. His blond hair fell and barely touched the floor. Already, he could feel the blood rush to his face, but the boy barely cared. There was nothing to do but watch and wait, and by now, his little adventure around the temple had gotten repetitive.

Considering how Sasori was like, he guessed he probably couldn't experiment with his explosions out here. He could just imagine what chaos would ensue if he did, what kind of lecture he'd receive. Deidara briefly laughed at the thought, he'd definitely do that, but not today. The Akatsuki were a dangerous organization and he didn't feel like getting on anyone's bad side. _Especially not Kakuzu's..._

He dully stared at the path, eyeing a single stone in middle of it. With nothing too interesting but a bunch of ritualistic statues around the temple, he'd decided to go further off. On the other side of the temple, he'd discovered a gigantic lake with another torii leading down a stone step path. Right now, he was somewhere along the east of the Temple, eyeing the road for absolutely anything. The blonde tried to remind himself he was guard duty, but guard duty was boring, probably why all the guards he'd ever seen thus far were quiet and unsocial.

Deidara made a loud sigh, face turning red from all the blood that was gathering. Knowing he'd probably have to recover from remaining upside-down, he took a last gander down the dirt path.

Off a corner, something emerged from a tree, a humanoid silhouette at the moment. Excitement rose within Deidara as he squinted to get a better look. The person was still fuzzy but a glint of a forehead protector bounced off of the sunlight.

_Someone's coming!_ Immediately, he swung himself upright and jumped higher into the trees to hide. This person wasn't close enough yet, but if he got any closer, than Deidara would consider it a threat.

The silhouette began to clear, revealing a male just around his age though he might be a few years older. His eyes were pitch black and he wore a Konoha symbol on his forehead, slashed right across the steel. Straight black hair fringed over the corners of his eyes. Judging from the uniform, he seemed to be formerly from the ANBU, though he donned no mask. Though he noted the tear-troughs underneath his eyes were a bit strange for someone so young.

Deidara couldn't believe how lucky he was. This kid was just around his age, meaning that he probably soared above them in combat skills. Deidara had encountered many of his age, usually genin. Many of them fell to his explosions, and he doubted this one would be any different.

As expected, the raven walked closer to the temple, heading in a direct path towards it. From what it seemed, he hadn't noticed Deidara's presence, a good thing on his part. Regardless, the boy felt he needed to see if he could simply scare the guy away, since he was a guard and all. There was a chance he could have just been wandering and needed a little nudge to get him out of the Akatsuki's way.

Deidara emerged from the tree, landing right in front of the stranger's path. The stranger stopped and eyed him, not a single hint of surprise showing on his face. A wide smile was plastered on the young subordinate's face, challenging the newcomer.

"This path is blocked off, sorry about that." Deidara informed him. His hands were already excited, chewing clay at a rapid pace. "It should be open by the end of the day. Come back then."

The other boy remained unfazed. "I have something important I must do. Please let me through."

The monotone voice caught the boy off guard. Deidara sweated slightly, did this kid have no fear or what? Looking at his headband, he was a rogue, but with no Akatsuki cloak to show for it, the boy had no respect for him as part of the organization. His smile widened, eyes narrowing.

He took a step to the left, quickly denied as the blonde mirrored him, determined to stand firm. The stranger's eyes snapped up to him, a sign of annoyance. Deidara felt gleeful at the look he received.

"Step aside. I don't want to have a hurt a child."

Deidara quirked an eyebrow and pointed at the other. "Huh? You're a kid too."

"By child, I mean the more foolish one. Also, I am definitely older than you."

The smooth tone hit a nerve in the blond, causing him to twitch. What was this guy doing threatening him? Well, neither knew each other, so it was safe to assume he wasn't aware of the eleven-year old's strength.

"You wanna fight?" Deidara barked through grit teeth.

"The only one initiating a fight is you. I have some business I need to take care of. I will tell you again: let me through."

The blonde huffed and whipped out a clay minion with its wings outspread. Deidara pushed one leg back, readying himself for the battle to come. This guy didn't look like he was gonna move. Tasked as the lookout here, he assumed he was responsible for keeping the meeting undisturbed. He could only imagine what reaction he'd get from Sasori once he'd spilled the whole story onto him.

* * *

**A/N: Some of you wondered where he was and here he is. I've planned this scene from the very beginning of the Fanfiction so I'm real happy to finally be writing it. Everything from here on is less Iwagakure-focused and more Akatsuki-focused. I can also finally write ideas I've been waiting to write for a long time but getting Part 1 right took a hell-lot of rewrites. **

**Thanks to Mew Hana for Reviewing so much, it really helps get these things out! Nice to see ya Tala Is Shining! Welcome back, RoCelia!**

**Next chapter: A Subordinate's Pride**

**Thanks to Anniegirl132 for being my Beta! Please review if you'd like!**


	28. A Student's Pride

**A Student's Pride**

Sunrays glared down at the two children, the tension of the air cautioning the forest animals to steer clear. A wind blew across the area, snapping a leaf free from a nearby tree as it flew in between them, circling in the air.

Deidara's mouth set itself in a thin, line, lowering his sculpture a few inches closer to the ground. He didn't dare blink, not while in the presence of this stranger. If he learned anything from Sasori, it was that you should never shut your eyes in battle.

Black pupils passively looked over the blonde, then gazed up above him to the temple on top of the hill. The stone path passed through a red torii, his current goal at the moment. By now, he couldn't afford to waste any time. This kid seemed pretty determined, and if it was a fight he wanted, a fight he would get.

The raven closed his eyes. "If I win, you'll let me through." Opening them revealed red irises, a strange pinwheel pattern.

_What's up with his eyes?_ The boy quirked an eyebrow, squinting slightly. Whatever that was, he certainly hasn't dealt with it before. Probably one of those 'Dojutsu' things that Sasori told him about. Regardless, it was inferior to his art. Sasori had yet to truly compliment it, but he knew he master liked it.

Deidara raised his sculpture again. "I'm fine with that. Just don't mock me. You'll see..." The blonde hid a hand behind his back, chewing up some clay and pressing it in his hand. The product was a long insect with many legs, twisting in curls in his palm to make it more portable, a centipede.

He grinned eagerly. "That you messed with the wrong kid!"

His arm winded back over his head, tossing the clay minion towards the other. Itachi jumped back to dodge the attack, exactly where the eleven-year old wanted him. Once the raven had entered the bomb's vicinity, Deidara pulled up his hand seal excitedly.

"_Katsu_!"

_BOOM_

* * *

_BOOM_

Everyone in the room fell silent, shuddering at the large sound. Collectively, the members began to gather at the large entrance, gazing a bit towards the East where a large smoke column had blown its way through the air from the forest.

Kisame revealed his pointy teeth and clasped his sword, looking further on. His sword murmured in response, the bandages began to undulate excitedly as if something alive was trying to break free. "So who is it we gotta fight?"

"Who knows, I hope they have a high bounty though." Kakuzu raised his hand into a claw, taking a step onto the road.

"Wait, we don't want to reveal our meeting place." Pein instructed the group. "If more than two of us arrive, then this will place will be under suspicion." He turned to the woman standing by the door. "Konan."

She shook her head. "I don't know."

_That's a bit far...could it be?_ Sasori watched behind everyone else, pushing back the hunch that he knew exactly who it was. Many ninja out there used paper bombs, and Deidara was instructed specifically to wait out at the front on the other side of temple. What would he be doing over there?

Attentions gathered as a shiny spot appeared on the wooden boarded floor, forming a lump that grew and greened. The cylindrical shape became two halves of a large Venus flytrap, two halves opened to reveal a two-colored man. "_Did you guys see? There's a fight going on near here._ One_** of the kids fighting looks suspiciously similar to Sasori's subordinate**_."

Sasori cursed, his hunch proving true. The members turned to Hiruko, pregnant silence asking the answer that didn't need to be said. He gauged them, knowing well that he'd have to explain this sooner than later.

Sasori groaned exasperatedly.

"That damn brat."

* * *

"Hehe...you talk big but it looks like that's all you've got." Deidara straightened, smiling at the scene.

The strange ninja was stuck on the spot, a large centipede wrapped around his body restricting movement. Though the silence and flat face of the other child disturbed the blonde a little, he could plainly see that this kid had no escape from his jutsu. His smile widened as he commanded the centipede to tighten around the other, watching as clothes began to stretch and the stranger's breathing began to hitch and struggle, causing a few twitches to make its way through the legged creature.

He made the hand seal again, looking over his work as if he'd just taken down a king. "That's what you get...for disobeying me."

The seal raised itself to eye level. "Ka-"

_THWACK_

The next thing he knew, the boy's head began to throb heavily, someone had hit him, and hard. Sounds meshed together, muffled by the harsh pounding that had been mixed in with dizziness.

"Ow, ow, ow!" Deidara held his head, then snapped angrily at the guy behind him. "What was that for!?"

He immediately regretted those words, as before him stood the bulky puppet of Hiruko, tail raised over his head in a sign that it was Sasori who had struck him. The harshly put question sparked an anger in the puppeteer, who growled at him. "Did you hear me you idiot? Take a good look at yourself!"

_Idiot? What's wrong with Danna? What's he angry about?_

Suddenly, a tightness plagued his body, breath hitching as he felt something coil tightly around his leg and torso. Deidara stood frozen, accidentally biting his tongue as the sensation came to light. In a struggled, he turned his head down, eyes widening at the state he was in. His own centipede, his own creation was tightly wrapped around him, in the same manner that it had constricted the other boy.

"What?" Deidara tried to move his arm, finding it tangled in the mess of legs he intentionally molded. "How?"

"That was close. A little later and you'd have blown yourself up."

Deidara twisted over his shoulder, teeth grit as he tried to get a look at the owner of the new voice. A tall man stood with an Akatsuki cloak. He had an angular boxy face with unusually blue skin. He squinted a little, eyeing what suspiciously looked like gills right below his freakish eyes. He made a snide grin, revealing pointed triangular teeth, like a shark's. He noticed a giant sword on his back with an unusual hilt, not wrapped in the usual Same(1) grip.

Looking around, Deidara began to feel small as the other Akatsuki's gazes fell on him, staring him down with an unreadable gaze while encircled around the pair. Humiliation settled in, but before he could complain, he needed to know what was going on.

For a moment, he wondered if the shark could read minds, since his question was answered pretty quickly. "You were caught in Genjutsu."

"G-genjutsu?" Deidara managed, trying not to taste his own blood on his tongue. "Since when?"

Deidara frowned as no explanation was given, a quiet silence being the only response he gained. An anger rose within him, directed straight at the guy he assumed cast the Genjutsu. How could he look so calm? Didn't he know he was surrounded by the most powerful and dangerous ninja in the Shinobi lands? Not to mention, his master, Sasori of the Red Sand himself?

"What's everyone doing? He's an intruder!" The boy demanded.

"This _intruder_..." A smooth voice interrupted him. Pein stepped up to the plate, standing beside the_ intruder_. " Is our new member."

_New member?_ Deidara barely noticed as Hiruko's tail carefully cut the centipede in half, causing it to loosen its grip and free his body. The bug fell to the ground, giving the child the freedom to whirl around in Pein's direction, barely weighing his next few words.

"Huh? This kid!? He's an Akatsuki member!?" Deidara exploded, pointing accusingly at the stoic raven.

Ringed eyes narrowed, obviously not liking the back talk he was receiving from a mere child. At this, Sasori quickly reacted and wrapped Hiruko's tail around the blonde's head, earning muffled protests. Over time, he'd refined his skills and accuracy, to the point he wasn't scared anymore to handle Deidara with it.

"Shut your trap, brat!" Sasori hissed quietly. Hiruko's head turned apologetically to their leader. "I'm sorry about my subordinate. He has a bit of a foul-mouth. He respects you, I don't doubt that."

"I accept your apology." The glare faded, returning to the usual intimidating stare that Pein would usually give. He turned back and scanned through all the other Akatsuki.

"A new member has arrived."

Itachi followed the older man's gaze, dojutsu still activated warily.

Sasori urged the child back, scolding him briefly before the brat finally managed to grudgingly keep his mouth shut. Returning his attention to their leader, Orochimaru caught his eye, a tiny smile making its way onto the pale-man's face. From what it seemed, the snake was paying some extreme attention onto the new boy, restraining himself from something.

_What's he up to?_

Orochimaru made a sneer. "Itachi Uchiha."

Pein ignored the snake, continuing. "Itachi Uchiha may be young, but he's as fully-fledged a shinobi as any of us are."

Two members separated to make way for another, Konan emerging from behind both Kakuzu and Sasori. Deidara also stepped back, curiously wondering what she was approaching Itachi for.

Konan walked over to the child, receiving no comments as she did. She held out a hand, though too far from the Uchiha that he could make a shake. A crack formed in her cheek as a stack of papers fell and flitted into the air, more blank papers flurrying around them to finally form what looked like roses wrapped in more paper. She presented it to Itachi, who took it hesitantly.

"Welcome to the Akatsuki, Itachi Uchiha."

Deidara scowled as he saw steely her gaze soften, a burning rage bubbling in his stomach and clenched his fist. Who was this guy? He wasn't any older than the blonde was so why was he being acknowledged while the bomber had to take a backseat to him? All he did was perform some fancy genjutsu; it wasn't like he did any actual fighting.

_Tch! I'll show them._ Deidara glared daggers at the newcomer._ I'll show them who's really stronger!_

* * *

"-And how old is he anyway? Twelve? I don't get it! Why is he an Akatsuki member and not me?"

Sasori zoned out of Deidara's rant. The ground shook, an indication that the blonde had destroyed something else. As a result, his cup toppled over, spilling the tea all over the scroll and stained it a dirty brown. Sasori closed his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose out of habit. If only the little boy he took in during the rainstorm was a little more quiet and sensible...

His head made another 180 towards Deidara, observing the boy stomp his angers out and try to blast a poor field mouse into submission. By now, the green grass was reduced to a pile of ashes, several black scars remaining on the land as a mark of the boy's work.

"I HATE HIM! I HATE HIM! I_ HATE-BLAH_!"

Deidara halted his rant, coughing slightly as some blood trickled down his chin. Sasori's pulse quickened. Had the child gotten hurt while he was gone? Why was he coughing up blood?

Immediately, the puppeteer shot up and came to the child's aid, bringing a clean cloth with him. Knelt down, he quickly tried to wipe the blood from the blonde's mouth, rubbing circles onto his back.

"Hey, what happened?!" Sasori hissed, annoyed that his subordinate hadn't told him anything about this injury. If it was bad...

Deidara continued to cough, then looked up at the puppeteer with narrow eyes. "I just bit my tongue, that's all."

The redhead didn't seem to believe him, putting the cloth on his knee before ordering the child to open his mouth. As ordered, the eleven-year old did so, revealing a mess of blood all over his tongue. From what it seemed, he had choked a little on it.

"When did you bite your tongue?"

Deidara felt even more irritated at the hurried voice that his mentor made, quickly swiping away the puppeteer's hand. "I did it when I got trapped by my bug, okay!"

Sasori's concerned face became more sullen, almost making the blonde guilty. Quietly, he picked up the cloth and continued to wipe the boy's mouth.

"You had me worried...brat."

"Worried?" The child repeated and scoffed. "Why are you worried? Shouldn't you be more concerned with that Itachi guy? Like everyone else is?"

The redhead gave a sharp glare, silencing the boy. "I don't remember caring for an Uchiha, just a brat who has a loud mouth." Sasori averted his gaze. "I don't care if you're not an Akatsuki member. Not only that, you were ordered to inform us if you saw anyone strange, not engage them in combat you idiot."

Sasori seemed to hesitate, adding something else in a low murmur.

"You're safer this way."

Deidara paused, still underneath the puppeteer's care. He'd never heard his danna talk like that, not so directly before. It was usually just sarcasm or some small praise. He'd never explained himself.

"As Akatsuki members, we're not completely safe. We're targeted by everyone one of the Great Shinobi lands, so a lot of us...don't make it very long." Brown eyes looked up to meet blue ones. "You remember a year ago? When I left you with Tobi to get a special puppet for my collection?"

Deidara seemed to think, then nodded.

"There's a reason why I didn't let you come. Things like that often end up as Akatsuki missions, and I only let you come to the ones I know you can handle with my help. While I can still order you around without Leader getting on my case, I'd rather make sure you don't get hurt."

Sasori summoned some water out of a scroll and urged the boy to drink it and spit it out so the blood would get out of his system. Deidara listened intently.

"I'm a fool for saying that...especially as a ninja..."

The moment seemed to overwhelm the puppeteer, quickly shooting up from his spot, returning to his usual face after putting away the water. "But I have my reasons."

The blonde watched as his mentor created an awkward silence, having ended the lecture abruptly. Turning his back on the boy, he headed back for the hill. The sun seemed to intensify, making the area even brighter than before.

"You...you should go play somewhere. Have fun."

Deidara noted the haste in his voice, like the Akatsuki was trying to make his words quick and get over with it. He smiled, a fluttering in his chest at the feeling. It wasn't really praise, but Sasori just genuinely expressed worry, and that was good enough. Though it wasn't as if he was gonna change his opinions because of him.

_Danna._

* * *

_The lake would have been a nice sight, beautiful._ Itachi thought, staring out at the sparkling water. A clear reflection of the snowy mountains in the distance showed themselves, barely disturbed by anything that breached the water's surface. A morning bird called out in the distance, quickly skimming the tension of the lake as it flew right over it. He currently stood on the docks, his new partner heading off towards the stone path.

The Uchiha lowered his gaze, staring down below the redwood planks. Triangular fins sliced the water's surface, encircling each other in repeating paths as some jerked violently when bumping into another. _If it weren't for these sharks._

* * *

_"I've heard the rumors, you've slaughtered all of your Uchiha clansmen." Kisame's smirk grew. "Quite an achievements for a little one like you."_

* * *

_A swishing sound emitted from behind, the edge of the wrapped sword levelled at his shoulder threateningly. "Do you want you know something interesting? Some sharks are ovoviviparous which means that the eggs hatch inside the female's body, then are born. With some kinds of sharks, the number of eggs that hatch are not equal to the number of pups born. Do you know why?"_

* * *

"They eat each other in the womb...cannibalism." Itachi breathed, closing his eyes. What had he gotten himself into, joining this organization?

"Eh? Did you say something?"

A familiar voice mocked him, a hint of challenge in it. Silently, he turned, facing the boy whom he had faced back on the path. The blonde was definitely younger than he was; he'd been surprised to meet anyone close to age here.

Deidara's eyes followed the shark for a moment, watching the tallest Akatsuki disappear up the stone steps. _So that's Kisame...definitely not the walking goldfish I imagined._ Sternly, he turned back to Itachi with his arms crossed, trying to control his own glare.

Itachi stood there, unfazed by the sudden appearance of this boy. "Do you want something?"

"...How old are you?" The blonde seethed.

The raven responded with a question of his own. "How old are _you_?"

Deidara scowled, stomping the deck causing some of the sharks to freak out. "Hey! I asked first!"

One of the sharks swam behind the bow, thrashing the water violently. With a whip of its tail, a large wave splashed onto the child, drenching him in cold lake water. The pair stood there for a moment, Itachi holding a straight face while the bomber felt another stab into his pride.

* * *

"I don't need your help."

Deidara muttered as he dried himself off with a towel. Luckily, only his back and a bit of his shoulders were drenched. His hair was also wet but that would dry with time.

The two stood near the torii at the foot of the stone path leading up to the temple, Itachi seated on the first step. The blonde looked him over, noting the boyish features of the new Akatsuki. He didn't look like much; he'd seen plenty like him, just not with dojutsu. _Cheater. He'd be like others if he didn't have that jutsu._

"Well, you gonna answer me?" Deidara tossed the towel to Itachi.

The Uchiha didn't meet his gaze, focused on getting up and pinning the towel on a branch to dry. He turned back and sat back on the step.

"I have no obligation to tell you."

_Obligation? That's a pretty grown-up word_. The blonde grumbled. "We're definitely around the same age. I don't see why you can't answer."

"Perhaps we are the same age, but I'm a higher rank than you."

The statement struck a nerve within the boy, his fists clenching while his hand mouths began to salivate at the idea of getting more clay to blow this bastard up. Deidara made a hostile expression, not liking where the conversation was going. That cloak...he shouldn't even be wearing it.

Itachi contemplated his words absently. "I'm thirteen."

"Finally." Deidara let up a little. "I'm eleven. My master is Sasori no danna."

No response came, simply the Uchiha looking up at the sky. The space between each answer was becoming nerve-racking, since the blonde was more used to getting his answers quick and easily, or at least with some work. Just waiting was stupid.

"Eleven." Itachi sighed. "You're so young."

"Well, you're thirteen, you're just as young as I am."

"No, we're not the same. Maybe we would be if I were thirty and you were twenty-eight, but we're not. Age gaps become larger the younger we are."

"You sure talk big." Deidara huffed, crossing his arms again.

"Where are your parents?"

Deidara glowered and quickly exploded. "I'm not a little kid! And I don't need parents. I have my master."

Itachi's gaze fell on the blonde. "Parents and masters are not the same thing. Have you ever had parents? Aren't you better off going back to them then sticking around people like us?"

"I've never had parents, I don't need parents. They just spoil their kids, they don't actually teach them. All they do is buy them things when they're young and complain about it when they grow old. It's all the same."

"Is that how you see it?"

Deidara quirked an eyebrow.

...

The blonde turned away, closing his eyes in defiance. "My name is Deidara. Not so nice to meet you."

* * *

**A/N: Anyone realize that whenever there's a _BOOM_ I switch scenes to someone else to who saw it? I noticed that...now it's cliché and I have change it up. Anyway, Itachi is here like I know some of you wondered where he was.**

**(1) Same(samegawa/same-kawa) is stingray or shark skin wrapped around the tsuka(handle) for grip. Fun fact: the pattern of which it is wrapped is called Samehada(Sharkskin).**

**Thanks to Anniegirl132 for being my Beta! Please review if you'd like!**


	29. Itachi Uchiha

**Itachi Uchiha**

_(Naruto Shippuden OST 2 Track 23 - Senya)_

_The sliding doors remained shut, not unusual for the late hours. He and his mother sat in the mostly empty room, both on opposite ends of their father. The stern man held his arms crossed, a proud smile on his face. His mother also looked on at him, more modest smile gracing her expression._

_"That's my boy. You'll go far in the ANBU ranks, there's no question about it."_

* * *

Itachi kept his head low, staring at the ground as he remained on the tree branch. He didn't feel like striking up a conversation with anyone. Briefly, he was introduced to each of the members that he would be working with. Quite a scary bunch, he was quite sure he didn't fit in with these guys. His father had such high hopes, and this is where he ended up.

Kakuzu passed on the electric pole lined road without a single glance, probably leaving after the meeting was over. Itachi's eyes followed him, holding in his fear towards the man. Out of them all, the miser was definitely one to take note on, for personal safety. Beyond the road was a simple field, lined with trees in the distance. A hilltop could be seen on the horizon, another robed figure that he came to know as Sasori sat underneath the single tree though quite blurry and dark under the shadows. He was also pretty scary, but didn't speak much. He seemed too grouchy to be able to put up with Deidara. Beyond the hill was another field, though blackened for an unknown reason.

Speaking of the boy, Kakuzu passed him on the path, blue eye sizing up Kisame who stood nearby with his Samehada blade rested on his shoulder. Deidara was a strange one, not an Akatsuki member and yet he didn't seem to fear the others but challenge them. Though he shrugged away occasionally when it was smart to, he didn't face them with a terror, as if he was oblivious to everything they had probably done to earn the title of S-rank.

"You're tall..." Deidara squinted as he gazed up at the shark, trying to protect his eyes from the glare of the sun.

"Hehe, am I?" Kisame grinned, looking down at the little squirt. In attempt to shock him, he brought down his sword, jabbing it into the ground. "You're pretty small."

"Obviously, I'm not an adult!" The little boy exclaimed fearlessly, waving his arms in the air to emphasize his point. Calmed down, the blond posed another question. "Are you Kisame Hoshi...Hoshigenku? Hoshi..."

Amused by the child's tenacity, the blue-skinned man corrected him. "Hoshigaki. Kisame Hoshigaki. I see you know me."

"Danna told me about you!" Deidara bounced energetically. "You're a lot different than I imagined."

_No fear at all._ Itachi continued to watch, seeing the slight discomfort that came over the shark in response. The two continued to talk, all the same as if it were a normal child and an adult who have met for the first time. If it weren't for their first encounter, he'd have tried to shoo the blond away from here to avoid being seen.

Well, no point in contemplating. He planned to stay here for a bit, and get to know the members a little more; it wasn't like he had a choice. Itachi rose and got down from the height, easily earning a glance from the younger boy. _He knew I was there the entire time._

Seeing him leave, Deidara quickly turned, waving briefly towards the other Akatsuki like they were neighbors. "Bye, Kisame-no-danna!"

He rushed over to the Uchiha, face contorting into a more serious look rather than the innocent one he used the majority of the time. His eyes narrowed, glaring slightly at the other.

Itachi stopped. "Why are you following me?"

"Danna told me to play somewhere and have fun. That's what I'm doing, following you."

The raven turned, slightly surprised by the words that came out of the boy's mouth. Sasori had told him that? Surely not, the old man seemed too ill tempered to say something like that. Looks could be deceiving however.

"You don't seem to like me. How could you have fun following me?"

Deidara rolled his eyes. "You see any other kids around here?"

He gazed around, facing the boy once again. "I see one."

That struck a nerve. "I'm not a little kid!"

"You asked me if there were other kids around here. Wouldn't that refer to yourself as a child?"

"Little. _Little_." Deidara hissed. "I still don't get why you're an Akatsuki and not me."

Itachi blinked. "You really want to...be like us?"

Orochimaru made a sadistic smile, back pressed to a nearby tree trunk. His tongue snaked out of his mouth, licking his lips. All of this waiting, and now it's finally time. His patience had been rewarded at last. Swiftly, he disappeared into the shadows of the forest.

"Why not? Danna's an Akatsuki, but he deserves it more than you."

The Uchiha stood for a moment, then turned away, returning to the direction he had gone in. Deidara blinked, scoffing before doing the same, keeping up with the other. A few minutes passed, both stepping out onto the familiar setting of the cobblestone path leading uphill to the temple. Itachi began to climb the steps, younger following a good distance behind, back faced to him.

"You should go home."

The little boy looked at him oddly.

"It's dangerous here. Even with your master, he can't protect you forever. Someday, we all have to leave the nest and fend for ourselves. You're not old enough to do that."

"You think I haven't faced death?" Deidara let his gaze fall to the floor. "I've already killed people. There's no going back afterwards. I've nearly died three times. Danna's saved me twice."

The path split in two, a familiar lamppost marking the place where both ends differed in direction. Itachi headed to the right, continuing up the stairs towards the temple.

"You should stop acting so uptight." Deidara advised. "People will be nicer to you that way. I saw what happened with Kisame-no-danna. He's not that bad."

* * *

_A swishing sound emitted from behind, the edge of the wrapped sword levelled at his shoulder threateningly. "Do you want you know something interesting? Some sharks are ovoviviparous which means that the eggs hatch inside the female's body, then are born. With some kinds of sharks, the number of eggs that hatch are not equal to the number of pups born. Do you know why?"_

* * *

"I hope your right about that."

The eleven-year old's look intensified, not sure how to take the reply. As they walked, it didn't take him long to realize that a third pair of footfalls had joined both of theirs, someone was approaching from behind. For now, he wouldn't look; it could very well just be another one of their own.

"Deidara."

_Orochimaru._ The blond paused and turned back, putting on his oblivious face to hide his discomfort. Striking yellow eyes quickly pierced his guise, causing Deidara to falter slightly.

Orochimaru made a deep laugh, earning the attention of the Uchiha just a few steps further up the path.

"Sasori told me he wanted you to head back."

The hush tone sent a shiver down the boy's back. It didn't matter what he preached to his danna, they were just big words. Having spent three years away from the snake, the bomber had long been astray from the Akatsuki's presence. The old feeling returned, isolation mixed in with a sense of doubt.

A wind blew on the area, moving the pale-man's cloak slightly in the breeze. His wide smirk remained, irritation showing in his eyes at the blond. "Well? You don't want to keep your precious master waiting do you?"

The subordinate remained silent. Sasori just told him a short while ago to play and have fun, he'd never tell Orochimaru to come get him, they didn't trust his partner that much. _What does he want? What's going on?_

"Go on already, didn't you hear me? I have some...business I want to take care of with our new member here. Be a good little boy and go straight home to Sasori, okay?"

Business, what business? Deidara looked back to Itachi, eyeing him for a moment. His sharingan had not activated, staring down at the snake with a different look than before. He bit his lip. _Damn, maybe I should have warned him about Orochimaru before we got here. I mean, I hate him but...dealing with this guy does nobody any good._

"Itachi?" He asked.

"...It's fine. It's on your master's orders, you should follow them."

The wind picked up, creating a flurry of green leaves to dance in the air. The little boy's face fell, the tension rising as quickly as the breeze was.

"I don't need you to tell me that, geeze...I already told you: I don't need your help!" With that, Deidara hurried down the steps, disappearing into the wall of trees.

At last, the two were alone.

Orochimaru's blood raced, the very moment he had waited for, all that time, finally for something worth it. His pale hand twitched, a hiss emitting from his sleeve while the cloth jerked back as if something moved underneath.

Continuing up the steps, the snake slithered out of his sleeve, rearing its head back. In a split second, the serpent had wrapped around the raven, coiling several tight circles around its victim. Forced to a stop, Itachi stared passively at the snake, its fangs brandished at him threateningly as it made a loud hiss.

"One who possesses the precious sharingan appears before me. How lucky I am." Orochimaru tilted his head upwards, eyes widening eagerly.

* * *

"Danna!"

Sasori lost his concentration, growling slightly as he turned towards his subordinate, putting no effort into hiding his irritation. His puppet was almost finished, just need a little polishing up and it would be ready for testing in the next hour or so, he planned to stay for a while after all.

He gazed over at his brat, who looked less gleeful than he was concerned. Regardless, he still questioned why the boy was wearing less clothing. Had he gone swimming? Kisame put his sharks in that lake didn't he?

"Orochimaru! I think he's after Itachi!"

"What!?"

* * *

_KRSH_

A pale hand fell onto the floor limp, Akatsuki ring still firmly attached to left pinky. The snake cried out in pain, desperately grasping his left wrist and applying fierce pressure onto the severed limb. His body shook, a black expression going over his features as he trembled underneath the Uchiha's gaze.

Itachi held his bloodied kunai in his hand, holding still in the case of another attack. He would not let the other ninja escape his Genjutsu.

Nearby, a familiar blond child raced through the forest, quickly emerging from the wall of trees in haste. His stopped abruptly in the middle of the scene, blue eyes switching between both ninja. Deidara's presence remained ignored in the standoff, giving the boy a chance to back off.

His gaze moved down the floor, eyes widening at the sight of a pale ringed hand lain on the stone floor, a clean slice where it had parted spewed out with fresh blood, dripping down the steps. Droplets remained splattered in Itachi's direction, leading Deidara's sight to settle on the bloodied kunai, now realizing what had just happened.

Deidara dare not blink, holding his breath with lips slightly parted as he slowly backed away from the two, not liking the feeling that plagued the air. His back pressed up against a bark surface, firmly moving himself against the tree. _Did he just...he just..._

A single eye slowly but surely returned to Itachi. _He injured Orochimaru. Orochimaru!_

The Uchiha spoke up in a calm voice. "Orochimaru, before my eyes, all of your jutsu become useless."

"Impossible..." Deidara breathed. His mind screamed for him to move, but he couldn't, frozen on the spot before two powerful Shinobi. It didn't matter to his instincts that neither noticed, something told him, if he didn't get away, they would surely notice sometime.

The raven's kunai lowered, a slight bit of security washing over his body. This man was of no threat to him, not while his Sharingan was activated.

More blood spilled onto the steps, the snake having loosened his grip on the open wound. The blond jerked back, knowing immediately when another ninja was about to move in for another strike.

"ITACHI!" Orochimaru moved towards the younger boy, cool facade broken at the humiliation of being beaten by a mere child.

His target immediately tried to jump back, kunai raised again as an attempt to dodge the incoming attack. A single snake emerged from his sleeve, directly aimed at the Uchiha boy. Though Orochimaru could not move due to the Genjutsu, his pet would.

The snake's jaws opened, revealing sharp fangs that curved and extended in his direction. Itachi has not anticipated this, moving too slow a pace to simply move out of its range. His heart skipped a beat, eyes widening as the fangs moved in on him.

_SLASH_

"Hiss!"

Hiruko remained silent, watching the snake head join the fallen hand on the stone steps. The head laid limp, then began to jerk and move about as if it were still alive. He'd seen this before, no big deal. His large tail hovered over the scene, sharp edge having cut the snake in half before it could reach their newest member.

Itachi landed a few steps further up, knees bent in a crouch to soften the fall. His eyes widened, pinwheel pattern shifting its shape dangerously. A bead of sweat fell down his temple. That was too close.

"D-damn you...Sasori..." Orochimaru managed out, body still struggling against the Genjutsu and the paralyzing pain shooting up his arm. Yellow pupils stared up upon his partner, a dead glare returning the look.

"Danna!" Deidara called out, turned towards his master.

Sasori extended a hand within his puppet, latching chakra threads onto sections of his partner's body, keeping him firmly still. He swung Hiruko's head in Itachi's direction. "Deactivate the genjutsu, I can hold him."

Compliantly, the red pattern in the Uchiha's eyes swirled into their usual black. He let out an exhale of relief, discarding the kunai before letting his arm fall. Shoulders went slack and the boy raised himself, remaining on his spot to observe the snake struggle.

"_Hiss_-"

_CRUNCH_

The subordinate scrunched up his face in disgust, averting his eyes from the dead snake head. While his danna was here, he felt he had nothing to fear from his partner.

"Shut up, creepy snake." Deidara muttered and worked his foot into the dead serpents head, making the nerves unusable. If he learned one thing over all these years, even when beheaded, a snake could still bite.

"I heard something was going here so I decided to check it out." Sasori explained himself. "Leader went through all the trouble to get us a new member, so I won't allow for him to get killed on his first day, not by another member at least."

Hiruko shuffled towards the center of the road, wedging its bulky body between the two children and his partner, facing him squarely. Orochimaru scowled, growling at the three. Two little boys were one thing, but Sasori was whole other. With all those puppets at hand, he would suffer more than just a severed arm, especially if the puppeteer was crazy bent on protecting the duo behind him.

The binds on his body faded out, giving him freedom.

"This attack won't go unreported."

Orochimaru made a wary gaze at the three, spitting on the steps before turning around and descending the steps. "Tch! Do what you like."

They waited until the snake disappeared around a corner. Deidara finally let out his breath, face paling at the lack of oxygen. He wasn't even aware that he was holding it, but he was pretty sure only Orochimaru could cause him to do that. Maybe leader too...

Sasori stood there for a moment, then turned to Itachi. "I saw you injure him so I assumed you had things under control. Had I not decided to step in anyway, you would have been in a lot more trouble. It was a good thing my subordinate came to warn me."

"Ah, thank you, Sasori." Itachi bowed, only to hear an irritated cough from beside him. He looked up, face to face with a rather crossed looking eleven-year old. Deidara stared at him expectantly, tapping his foot rather loudly.

"Thank you, Deidara."

The blond made an approving look, nodding with a smile before snidely turning away from them both. "That's it, you should be speaking more like that. It's way nicer."

"You're the one to talk." Sasori grumbled.

Itachi stared for a moment, a warm fuzzy feeling quickly breaking his stone-cold guise. A smile made its way onto his face, allowing a small chuckle past his lips at the scene.

* * *

"My partner's a bit more dangerous than most, my advice to avoid him."

Itachi heeded his word, noticing a green hill up ahead with a single tree growing up top. Next to the tree laid a scroll with a menagerie of tools and wooden parts. A single wooden body was set on the scroll, right leg having yet to be attached. The bulky puppet moved up the hill, stopping underneath the light shadow.

"Danna's right." Deidara agreed with a sure nod that looked a bit too sure to the Uchiha.

The little subordinate joined his master on the hill, seating himself and leaning against the trunk of the tree, making sure to keep out of the puppet master's work area. His attitude seemed to vastly improve after he thanked him. Perhaps that was what the blond was waiting for.

Itachi scaled the hill, going a little further than both to take a gander out at the blackened field on the other side, contrasting heavily from the flowery green grass of which they came. A thick burning smell emitted from the field, though it didn't seem to bother both the child or the other Akatsuki.

"Danna?"

He heard the two begin to talk behind his back, onyx eyes continuing to scan over the scarred earth. With no bird sounds to listen to, he began to eavesdrop.

"Hm?"

"Did he have the eye jutsu that Orochimaru wanted?"

"Probably. Considering the attack, he might have waited for him to join just to do that very thing."

The thirteen year old turned to them both, momentarily halting the conversation as the boy realized he was being watched. He gave the bulky puppet a look before leaning back against the tree trunk, facing Itachi casually.

"Is it really that special?" Deidara seemed to groan.

"The Sharingan, a dojutsu utilized mainly in the Uchiha clan. Itachi Uchiha..." Hiruko's eyes moved up to the other boy. "As I've heard, you murdered your clan in as single night, making you the only Sharingan user left."

"Big deal. I bombed my village before I went." Deidara snorted.

"Not on purpose, you were scared according to you. You haven't changed that story."

"I still did it!"

_They seem to be fairly friendly towards each other_. Itachi made himself comfortable and sat down. So this was Sasori? A bit different from before, but then again, the two only made brief introductions before the old man decided to leave the temple. Never in his life had he imagined such a scene to unfold in the Akatsuki, a group known for its crimes.

The puppet made a low growl. "I just hope Kisame doesn't dump his own little brat on me in the future. I already have one, two is a hassle."

Deidara crawled over to the hulking puppet, knocking a few times on its body. The Uchiha noted a hollow sound. Surprisingly, the elder didn't retaliate from the touch, like he imagined most would.

"How are you gonna do any work in there anyway?"

"Give me a minute, I'm getting out, back up already."

As soon as his subordinate shuffled away, the body erupted in a white smoke. This didn't surprise the blond, who simply yawned and dropped his head onto the grass floor sleepily.

The cloud cleared, revealing a different form than before. Sasori was now a much younger looking man, about in his teens with short bright red hair. His face was certainly more youthful, though definitely a ways older than his fellow Akatsuki. Itachi caught his glance, slightly curious towards this entirely new introduction. So that old man was a puppet? Or shell?

Deidara looked up nonchalantly. "Don't be fooled, Danna's twenty-seven."

"Oh." Itachi blinked. Despite all the questions, he chose to keep them unspoken. If Orochimaru wasn't about to challenge the redhead, neither was he. Regardless of how strong he was, he couldn't underestimate the wrath of a far more experienced rogue.

The puppeteer looked over his shoulder, a bored look on his face as he paid some attention to their newest member. "It may a bit out of date to do this, but I'll thank you again for taking out those Iwagakure ninja back at the port village."

He shook his head. "No need. Leader ordered me to do it."

"Huh?" Deidara quickly shot up from his lain position as if an electric shock struck him. "What are you guys talking about? What Iwagakure ninja?"

"Remember the first village I took you to after we met? Not the one you woke up in, but the one after that."

The blond squinted. "The Ink village?"

"Yeah. When I came to get you, I was surrounded by a squad of Iwagakure ninja. I was going to deal with this swiftly but Itachi got them out of the way for me. Of course, he was probably just being tested for his skills by Leader before officially allowed to join."

"Really?" The eleven-year old dropped his head, thinking back, his voice becoming soft. "So you were around even then..."

Itachi thought for a moment. "Back then, I was told Deidara wasn't your subordinate. That's changed now?"

_Click_

Sasori slowly put down the leg, having finally re-attached it to the joint. The raven-haired boy spied a red logo on printed onto the neck of the puppet, a stylistic scorpion encased in a red diamond. "After the whole fiasco was dealt with, then he was arranged to be my subordinate. I have a long-term assignment to raise him as my student."

He propped the puppet up against the tree, a faint blue line extended from his finger to the marionette's arm, lifting it slowly before letting it drop, testing the durability of the joints.

"Afterwards, we got sent to Iwagakure to retrieve a scroll containing the brat's jutsu. The reason being that if the Akatsuki were to ever need it in the future, we could use the forbidden Kinjutsu. It also serves as a backup just in case Deidara somehow loses his hands or the jutsu fails one day." _Considering the duds recently though, it could be possible that time is coming soon._

Itachi glanced over to the rather downtrodden child, eyeing his hands. They didn't possess any special seals and he hadn't seen anything written on his palm. What kind of Kinjutsu? Ridding his mind of a question he didn't want to ask, he dragged another one out of the back of his brain. The redhead seemed somewhat trustworthy, seemingly friendly towards the blond so perhaps, he was less of a grouch than his first impression perceived.

"Sasori?" The raven paused, realizing that the tone of voice he used was tad bit more high-pitched and innocent than he had anticipated.

"What?"

He seemed harmless enough right now. "Do you know...Kisame very well?"

"Sort of. The Akatsuki don't meet a lot, so I don't know him personally. Why do you ask?"

His twiddled his fingers nervously inside his long sleeves, weighing his words. Itachi felt like a child all over again on his first day of the academy, and Sasori was his new teacher. Another feeling he didn't expect to experience here. Otherwise, he kept a straight face, hoping to stay strong. The redhead looked to be willing to give answers.

"He's my partner. Our first meeting was a bit...uh..."

"Not surprising. We don't tend to exactly become best friends with our partners. I don't like my own partner very much, so I'm in no place to advise you on how to befriend Kisame."

"I see. It's okay, I'll manage." Itachi sighed before feeling a glare directed towards him.

Currently, Deidara was staring daggers at the Uchiha, mouth set in a deep frown. "You're lucky to even see what danna really looks like. He doesn't like showing people his true form."

"Brat, be quiet."

"It's not fair!"


	30. Co-operation Disaster

**Co-operation Disaster**

"Stay with them." Sasori ordered. "I'm going go talk with Leader."

Kisame cocked his head, not quite sure of what kind of request he was really undertaking. It had been a peaceful morning, a thin mist over the lake quickly lifted once it was a few hours into daylight. Kisame hadn't left his post at the shore, having stuck around it for a while.

All of a sudden, his fellow Akatsuki Sasori had come along and dumped the fledglings onto him, claiming that they needed his supervision. As it turned out, those fledglings where both Deidara whom he knew as the redhead's subordinate as well as Itachi, his own partner. He was iffy about the idea of babysitting considering his own status and reputation. However, the puppeteer seemed adamant on tossing them into his hands in his absence. Not to mention his own partner, whom he wasn't too sure about his feelings towards.

He hadn't established any general relationship with Itachi yet, though their first meeting was less than amiable. Right after that, the Uchiha had left his side and gone out to explore as he assumed, and Kisame had no qualms with that. Having been without a partner for a good few years with the exception of occasionally being paired with Orochimaru for missions, he'd forgotten how to make proper introductions.

In the moment while they were all gathered at the red docks, neither of the children had protested. While Deidara had quickly and easily accepted Sasori's instructions, Itachi simply stood on the sidelines and kept silent.

"You sure about that? With_ me_?" Kisame gestured towards himself, emphasizing the fact that he wasn't as able or experienced as Sasori probably was with kids.

"They're not academy brats so they won't act like them. It's just for today." He grumbled a reply, already moving to leave.

Deidara had worn a rather pleased smile on his face, too gleeful to be an honest one. He watched his danna disappear into the woods, then turned to shoot that expression at the shark. Kisame stood there puzzled for a second, trying to comprehend what the heck he was forced to agree to. His own partner now turned to him, wearing his usual stoic face. At this, the blond sent a glare towards the other child, causing Itachi to lose the stiffness and try to breath calmly.

Once settled, everyone looked at each other, children waiting for something to happen while Kisame wracked his brain to try and figure out what _would_ happen. He'd never been too gentle in the past, usually avoiding kids or disciplining the more militant ones. These brats weren't militant, but they certainly weren't screaming, squealing, demons either, at least, he hoped they weren't.

Kisame tried to wear a confident grin, though the silence was becoming more and more sickening. "Well...um...what do you want to do?"

Deidara started first, trying to get something going. "What happened was that Orochimaru attacked Itachi for his eyes yesterday. Sasori no danna stopped him but he has to tell Leader about it. He doesn't want us to be alone so that's why we're with you."

A sure nod from the thirteen-year old validated the explanation.

Kisame scratched his head and turned to his left, eyeing something in the distance. "Well, I haven't eaten breakfast yet. I saw a stand just ways over, you hungry?"

* * *

It was a wooden shack with a sign up front that read 'Taiyaki', surprisingly well-kept despite the lack of customers to serve. They seemed to welcome travellers and didn't question the slashed headbands or cloaks. These features remained unnoticed.

Deidara stared at the fish-shaped cake in his hand, detailed with scales and gills like a real one though quite obviously too stylistic to be a real fish. It smelled a bit like sweet potato, a filling for Taiyaki. Lowering the cake, he compared it to Kisame, who currently paid the baker for their food.

_Gills? Check; Scales?...maybe; Fins? Nope. _

Noticing the look, the Akatsuki glanced over to the little boy, quirking an eyebrow at him. "What?"

Absently, he chomped on his own cake, staring blankly at Kisame. "Nothin'. Why do you have gills?"

Itachi paid for his own, giving the owner of the shop of a small bow before turning to the pair. He'd heard the question, and began to wonder himself. With the life he lived now, he liked to think nothing surprised him anymore, so the odd appearance of Kisame was shrugged off and replaced with other more pressing concerns. Now though, he was beginning to harbour the same question.

The blue-skinned man thought for moment, tapping his chin while the other hand held his own Taiyaki cake. He seemed to irk. "I think it was because of my abundance of water release chakra, I was born with a huge store so my body adapted accordingly." He grinned. "They called me the Tailless Tailed Beast because my chakra stores rivalled that of one. These gills are actually functional, I can breathe underwater with them so I can stay underwater for an infinite amount of time."

The child took another bite of Taiyaki. "Guess it helps that you're blue eh?"

"Deidara, that's not..." Itachi tried to stop him, trailing off when he saw the damage had been done.

The elder hung his head, everything about him drooped, confidence quickly dissolving. Both children exchanged glances, unsure of what to do.

"Y-You don't have to mention that." Kisame mumbled.

Deidara forced a smile. "Wait, wait, blue is my favorite colour! Haha..."

* * *

Three figures stood in alone in the room, Pein was among them, nodding after the puppeteer had finished. This wasn't an unusual occurrence, Akatsuki members attacking and trying to kill one another. Kakuzu was the same way and still remains to be to this day, a more brutal member than most.

"And you left Itachi alone?" Pein enquired.

"I left him near Kisame, he should know better than to stray far from him." Sasori paused. "And another thing, apparently Orochimaru had been waiting for something like this. My subordinate told me a few years ago that my partner was after a dojutsu of some kind. With the Sharingan here, who knows what lengths he'll go to in order to obtain it."

Leader shifted his weight, using a dismissive tone of voice. "This isn't any different than our other cases, though it's good to be aware. Orochimaru has done us a lot of good so this sudden development could be worrying. We'll deal with him later."

"Now, for your next assignment. I planned on telling you later on but since you're here, I'll give it you straight." Pein paused. "We're currently scouting for newer members. At the moment, a recent event involving the massacre has caught our attention. We've been hired and tasked with taking down whoever committed the act."

"Where is it?" Sasori asked.

* * *

Hiruko bowed its head before shoving off, heading towards the entrance into the light of the day. Sasori frowned immediately, turning to glance over to beside him as he halted his puppet. His partner smirked, leaning against a pillar casually. Neither moved, waiting for something to happen.

Orochimaru pushed off the pillar, taking a few paces away from the temple. "I'm not going to stop you from reporting, as I said, I'll let you do as you please. Anyways, don't you think this organization is a bit dreary? They say we have our freedom, but we ultimately play on their strings. It's sad, so I began to wonder: does anybody else have goals beyond where we are? You know what I want, my question is what do you want?"

Sasori remained silent, warily watching the snake. _He's planning something._

"Not going to tell me? Oh well, or is it, you don't have any plans at all? A bit of a disappointment. Weren't you going to live forever? If so, you'll definitely outlive the Akatsuki."

_He's taunting me._ Hiruko moved forward, ignoring the others monologue. He didn't have time for some soul-searching debate with his partner. For now, he had bigger problems than whatever Orochimaru was rambling about.

The snake chuckled. "There are things out there you can't kill, not always enemies."

At last, he seemed to end the talk, walking off on his own somewhere. Sasori deviated from the path and pushed through some shrubbery, making a B-line for the lake. To some, the dead-silence of the forest was disturbing, but with Kisame's sharks riling up the underwater wildlife, the creatures on land steered clear of the high-ranking ninja as well as the body of water itself.

A familiar laugh rung about the area, childish and yet with a hint of manic. Sasori emerged from the bushes, welcomed by an interesting scene.

In the sky, Deidara rode upon a winged pig sculpture, notably chubby with a bit of a lizard tail of some sorts. One hand was stuck inside a bag on his utility belt, replacing the pouch he previously used. Even then, the boy still possessed that pouch, refusing to let go of it for some reason.

Deidara didn't notice his master's arrival, too eagerly focused on the pair landing onto the water below. Itachi looked displeased, still in the process of discovering certain traits and habits of his new partner. Learning by trial and error wasn't a pleasant process, but it made the training a whole lot more amusing for the blond, who was currently acting as their enemy. Kisame also seemed a little fed up, having held back from using his sword.

Both partners stood on opposite ends of the lake, starting off with an attempt to surround the boy. Itachi eyed the pig, calculating the rough distance between him and the water's surface. Though it would be ideal to do so, Deidara limited himself from flying any higher than forty meters into the air since the fight started. Probably due to the unfair advantage it would give him to escape attacks, this wasn't exactly a training battle for his own benefit.

He glanced across the lake, mentally listing the techniques he'd seen his partner used. All of them were mainly melee or underwater jutsu's. Deidara wasn't stupid enough to try and get close to the water. Even if this was just a battle to develop on co-operation, there was a still a risk of severe injury, something neither could afford.

_Than I'll have to force him down_. A clinking sound emitted as two shuriken dropped from his sleeve. A knife shot at the sculpture, it's approach easily sensed as Deidara steered the pig away from the shuriken and watched them skyrocket into the air. The blond smirked, a simple attack like that wouldn't catch him off guard.

"You'll have to do better than that, Itachi!" Deidara shouted.

"_Water style: Water bullet_!"

Deidara whirled around too late before something rammed into the flying sculpture, causing him to stumble off and grab for the wing. His hand bit down on the clay, softening the material with its saliva. Due to the disturbance, the pig began to erratically spiral in the air, wings flapping about furiously to try and gain balance again. His grip loosened on the tumbling sculpture, eventually causing the boy to fall while his creation descended elsewhere.

_SPLOOSH_

A mess of bubbly sounds filled his ears as his breath was quickly silenced by the rushing water. Deidara's shot open to see the surface of the water rise above his head, a few bubbles coming off of his body. The blond waved his arms around a little, finding absolutely no nearby object he could grab onto. His heart skipped a beat. Crap! I can't swim!

On the lake, Kisame landed, barely considering Itachi's place and position before weaving hand seals and pressing his palm to the water._ I hope this isn't overkill..._

"_Water style: Five Hungry Sharks_."

Meanwhile, the Uchiha stood for a moment, observing some bubbles breach the surface. A few seconds passed and not a single thing followed those bubbles. On a whim, Itachi quickly rushed to the area, discarding his kunai as he quickly knelt down, peering into the deep dark abyss of the ocean. This silence surely couldn't...

The bubbles stopped rising, calming the waters tension. An eery tension filled the air, halting the Uchiha's breath.

"Deidara?" Itachi called out, hopelessly wondering if the blond could hear him. Despite their meeting today, he felt a little comforted knowing someone his age was in the same organization. He felt a little sickened at the thought of continuing on alone in this. Out of it all, he felt he could relate to him the most, even if they likely didn't have any similarities other than their age group.

Suddenly, something appeared at the bottom, a reflective blue dot that dispersed into five, a dark blurry image in the middle. Itachi blinked, leaning closer out of curiosity, had the child performed a jutsu?

The image became bigger and bigger, inching closer and growing faster with each rising moment. Itachi quickly stood up, trying to avoid whatever was rising from the depths a little late as a huge torrent of water exploded from the spot, something hard knocking the Uchiha away harshly.

Itachi fell back into the lake, quickly directing himself to resurface and spit out the liquids inside his mouth. He shook his head, wet bangs flipping about before they finally cleared from his eyes, looking upwards towards the thing that just arose.

A familiar small body flew into the air after being pushed by the noses of five sharks that dispersed once jumped, quickly dispersing into washes of water. Deidara met the height of his rise, quickly falling limply into his descent.

_He's not conscious! _Itachi looked around and quickly pushed onto the lake's surface, darting towards the eleven-year old in hopes of catching him. Apparently, he wasn't the only one with that idea, for it was Samehada that made him question Kisame's judgement and intentions.

Itachi got to him first, catching him in his arms but unable to move out the way as Samehada rammed into his side. It's shiny scales clamped shut, raking against his skin painfully, causing him to loose his grip on the younger and drop him again. The sword cried out a loud gurgle, skidding on lake before extending its scales to create drag and stop it. It slipped underwater, swimming downwards towards the tiny human.

_This is mess!_ Sasori watched from the sidelines, immediately displeased with how the attempt at teamwork was going. He had never seen teamwork this bad from the Akatsuki before, especially if they were paired by Leader from the very beginning. The only worse case he could think of were Kakuzu's mishaps, though they usually ended with one partner dead.

Kisame waited, looking down when Samehada returned with the little blond on its back, scales flattened as to not cause any further harm to the boy and create a smoother surface.

"What the hell happened."

Sasori approached within Hiruko, dead glassy eyes sending a threatening look towards Kisame. The other Akatsuki gulped, sensing the killer aura that radiated off the enraged puppet master. He pulled on a apologetic face, bowing to the elder in hopes of getting off a little easier. He hated to be uncharacteristically nice, but being polite was the only way he could think of in order to dodge the brunt of his anger. "I-I'm sorry, I'll definitely be more careful next time."

The puppeteer scoffed. "Don't say sorry to me." He swung Hiruko's head in Itachi writhing in another direction. "Take a good look at your partner."

Kisame glanced over, seeing the Uchiha sit up in the water a grasp at his arm and side, something red pooling into the water below. He didn't need to ask what happened, since it seemed pretty obvious.

As the Akatsuki shoved off to see to his partner, Sasori quickly scooped Deidara up with Hiruko's arm and laid him on the puppet's back, hurrying the shell towards the shore.

Samehada made an apologetic gurgle, submissively crawling across the water's surface towards Itachi. The new member understandably shuffled away, staring warily at the sword.

"Relax, it'll heal your wounds." He heard Kisame reassure him. The words didn't do very much to comfort Itachi, but he had not much of a choice. His hand moved away from the wound, revealing a freely bleeding set of scrapes that ran down his arm. On his side was shredded cloth, more scrapes visible there though less severe than the ones that raked his shoulder.

The sword made another deep gurgle, one of its spiky scales extended towards him like a long thin blade. It gleamed slightly in the sun before it rested gently on his other arm, the one that hadn't been injured. Once they made contact, Itachi felt something flow from Samehada into his veins, a sort of chakra. It felt pleasant, the same kind of pain-numbing pleasant feeling that one got when they were worked on by the mystic hand jutsu. Itachi turned his head to observe his wound, the blood stopped flowing and the scrapes closed up, his red flesh covering over in skin. His side also healed in the same way, though it wouldn't repair his clothing.

It gurgled again while withdrawing the scale, returning it to the cluster of other scales that covered the sword's body. Samehada backed off and made room for Itachi to stand up, giving a good look over his wounds to see the full-effect. He glided a finger over his arm, feeling only subtle differences in the skin to indicate he had been wounded at all. Otherwise, it seemed completely healed.

"So, you're blade can heal me." Itachi stated.

Kisame grabbed Samehada's hilt and hoisted it over his shoulder. The grin returned to his face. "In a sense, but it's your own body repairing itself. Samehada's just giving you the chakra needed to heal quickly, but I can't say it'll heal mortal wounds, I've never experimented."

The Uchiha decided to let go, allowing his partner a slightly thankful expression in return. He smiled lightly. "I'll try not to get killed. Thank you."

"No problem."

* * *

Deidara let out a series of coughs, water spitting out onto the grass as he mildly choke for a split second. He took a few shaky breaths, hoarsely forcing out a few more coughs to get the remainders of lake water out of his throat. The last thing he remembered was frantically panicking in the water and trying to yell out, only for his voice to drone out in the murky depths. After losing a lot of energy and oxygen, he blacked out after he felt something several blunt objects ram into his back.

The boy blinked a few times, gazing around to see three familiar faces peering down in front of the lake. Another look indicated he was on the shore, the red docks just a few meters off from the area while he sat on the contrast between the shoreline dirt and the grass. Hiruko's face loomed closer into his personal space in an invasive manner.

"You alright?" Sasori grumbled.

Deidara tried to force some words out only to cough up some more water. A few hacks cleared his throat before he could speak clearly. "Yeah."

Sasori could of sighed. "This is why you learn to swim."

The blond rolled his eyes. Swimming lessons weren't a thing in Iwagakure and he never learned since. It was a major weakness but he relied more on walking on water than learning to maneuver through it. For a while now, the puppet had insisted that he had to go learn somehow but he's put that off.

Resting propped his arm on his knee and eyed Itachi. This provoked a curious response from the Uchiha, suddenly aware of what he was doing. At this, the boy broke into a smile, making a childish laugh. "Your teamwork is terrible! Right danna?"

The blond stood up with little trouble, though slightly dizzy and wobbly. "I don't know what happened, but it looks really bad right now." The boy made a snide look at the torn hole of Itachi's shirt. He pointed directly at it. "That wasn't there before."

"Well, you seem alright." Hiruko shuffled up closer to his subordinate. "We have a new mission, though I don't plan to get it done until I have some work done. I also want to check something."

He turned to his subordinate. "Brat."

"Hm?" The boy replied lazily, not all that fazed out by the events that just ensued and his near-death experience as he scratched behind his ear.

"_DEIDARA_!"

"_YES, SIR_!" Deidara straightened instinctively, ear ringing from the sharp yell. Thinking twice, he relaxed slightly sheepishly corrected himself. "Uh...I mean, danna."

Sasori groaned and bowed Hiruko's head. "And you've been watching the local ninja train too. It's dangerous and you know that."

"Yes, danna." The boy replied monotonously.

Itachi blinked. "Local ninja?"

"There's a squad of Kirigakure nin stationed in the next village over." Kisame explained. "They're only chunin with some genin so there's nothing much to worry about. As far as we know, they should be gone by tomorrow so that's why some of us are staying behind. Kakuzu left early, he's not interested in the village."

"That's right!" The eleven-year old chirped. "And once they're gone, danna's gonna buy me some Bakudan Yaki!"

"_Maybe_, brat, maybe."

Kisame nodded. "I also plan to go eat out." He turned to his partner. "You want to eat something?"

Itachi stood there for a moment, mind wandering at the question. He tried not to focus on who was asking and tried to make himself comfortable, it was gonna be like this for a while. Before he joined, he never expected this, and it even seemed...a little nice.

He replied quietly, forcing himself to speak. "I would...like to visit a few Cafe's."

Deidara clapped. "Great! Then we're all going! Danna's paying!"

"I'm what?" Sasori growled.


	31. Take a Rest

**Take a Rest**

__(Naruto Shippuden Movie 3 OST Track 36 – Journey)__

"Here we are!" Deidara proudly stated.

Itachi followed him up the steps. The village was also built on top of hill, much like the temple was a couple hundred meters away. He took a last glance at the rice fields that surrounded the path. Next to the gravel road was a small stream, quietly filtering into the farm plants. No walls fences in the settlement, leaving it wide open plains of grass and some patches of trees to grow on the land. Two large buildings resided on the street, likely inn's with the lamp posts by the doors and lit second floor. The street wasn't crowded, but it was definitely bustling. The mass of villagers only got thicker towards the middle.

A tall figure walked into view. He glanced up curiously at the other Akatsuki, expecting some sort of explanation.

"I'm going to go buy something for Samehada." Kisame moved further off towards the edge of the houses and inn's near the fields and pointed at his feet. "We'll meet back right here in three hours. Then, Sasori will treat us."

Deidara's eyes gleamed at the idea, having not eaten his favorite food in a long while due to their travels. Of course, Sasori never actually agreed to pay for them all, the little guy liked to think that they could force him somehow. This was their first stop after a long trek back from Kusagakure from a short mission. He'd gotten sick of eating bugs to survive.

He turned to the other child, gesturing him to follow. Venturing inside, the raven had forgotten what it felt like to wander a village that wasn't his own. Sure, he'd been on plenty of missions, but none of them allowed him to sit back and relax for a while.

Itachi let his mind ponder things for a bit, mindlessly tailing Deidara wherever he went. The boy must have noticed this, since he didn't force him to talk the entire time.

By now, the two were observing a street performer capture the crowd's attention. A semi-circle of space was granted to the pair, one wearing bland colours plus a cloth to cover his face while the other dressed more elaborately, seeming to be in-character. The duller one was a puppeteer as it seemed, putting on a small show for the kids. Two puppets interacted with the his partner, a little boy and his dog. Kids of a variety of ages lined up at the front, leaning in with wide eyes to watch the performance.

Deidara also seemed to enjoy the show, though giving some space to the other villagers as they observed the scene play out. Itachi was a tad bit surprised to come out of his thought bubble to find that the blond was interested in something like this. Especially since he could guess that the child saw his danna perform everyday.

Itachi watched the puppet show as well, one of the performers beckoning a child volunteer to participate. He turned to Deidara. "Where is Sasori?"

The blond returned the look briefly. "I don't know. He just disappears sometimes."

Laughter came from the little girl as she received a plastic flower from the tiny puppet, taking it gleefully. A wide smile graced her face, giggling far too much. She had simply taken a soccer ball and balanced it on her head, earning an 'ooh' from the other children.

"You're not worried?"

Deidara didn't lock gazes, more interested in the show while he shrugged. " Why?"

She ran into her mother, hugging her knees with a large tomato blush on her cheeks, grasping the plastic flower in one hand and ball in the other. The performance continued on as normal, goofy voice acting as well as rather dramatic poses seemed to entertain the children. For the two Akatsuki kids though, it was less than exciting.

"One more amazing volunteer to show us their _special_ trick!" The vibrant performer announced.

Deidara glanced over to Itachi. "Danna's just like that. I don't really ask since he usually just comes around. If it's gonna be longer than a day, he'll tell me, then I usually get stuck with Tobi."

"Tobi?"

The puppet danced about the crowd, passing by the children who eagerly held their hands up in hopes of getting picked. The marionette twirled and did cartwheels, going from one to the next like notes on a piano.

Deidara sighed. "My babysitter. He's really annoying, and more of a kid than me."

Onyx eyes watched the puppet made its way past them, while its master looked around the crowd for any potential. His performer partner continued to sing whimsically, keeping the viewers entertained with his drawl. They were too far back into the people to really be noticed.

"Is he an Akatsuki?"

"Hell no," Deidara snorted. "You would have seen him if he was there. Real dumbo."

Neither succeeded to notice as the crowd backed off, making room. Itachi wondered for a moment, if someone like the blond even needed a sitter at all. He seemed capable enough, though rather reckless and inexperienced.

"How about you young man?"

A stubby arm was pointed in their direction. Both quickly came to attention, halting their conversation while the tiny puppet shook its arm again, bouncing on the string. In a false voice, it spoke, "You there. You look like a talented one!"

Deidara stuck a thumb at himself, slightly excited. "Me?"

"The raven-haired boy, you would do well!"

Crushed, the blond directed a glare at Itachi, a tinge of jealousy sinking in. The thirteen-year old blinked, warily giving his companion a confused glance. Noticing his resentful look, the Uchiha smiled awkwardly and stepped aside, holding out a hand to Deidara and chortled. "I don't have any talent, sorry, but he does."

Deidara eagerly stepped forward only to be blatantly ignored as the puppet swiftly had its arm follow the raven. "Come on! Don't be shy!"

"Eh?" The blond exclaimed.

"Please, choose someone else. My friend would really like to try." Itachi waved a hand, backing off from the little marionette, urging the puppet to point at Deidara.

In another failed attempt, the blond moved again, only to be shunned as the puppet bounced from the spot, its wooden mouth bobbing up and down as it spoke, arm pointed directly at the raven adamantly.

"No, no! We need _you_! You and _only_ you!" The puppeteer's voice grew harsher, taking a few steps towards the Akatsuki.

The crowd didn't seem to notice this change in tone, still wildly amused by the scene thinking it was part of the show. Not surprising, since Itachi wore an interesting cloak himself.

Deidara quickly produced a sculpture and presented it to the puppet. "I can do it! I can show you art!"

In a fit of rage, the marionette suddenly bore teeth, yellow pointed cones slipped out of jaw holes while its eyes suddenly became a bloodshot red. It pushed in close to the boy's face, clacking its joints loudly as a warning. "NO! NO! NOT YOU! THAT ONE! NOT YOU! PLEASE KINDLY GO AWAY! DO NOT INTERRUPT!"

Having dealt with several situations like this before, the blond didn't falter. The words didn't sink in, simply droned out as dialogue talk as Deidara shoved the sculpture into the puppets chest. The blond's patience was beginning to whittle down, and he really wanted to perform for the people. "I. Can. Show. You. Art."

The puppet hung there on its strings, staring dully at the boy's face. Deidara smiled pleasantly, hoping to win over the puppet. Children began to step away, sensing the tension that was beginning to build, the happy-go-lucky atmosphere ruined. Chatter from the crowd ceased.

"NO! NO! NO!"

Suddenly, the puppet jumped into the air, bashing its arm on the child's forehead. Deidara frowned, gleeful look broken as he was beginning to go down to his last straw.

"_ONLY HIM! NOT YOU! GO AWAY PLEASE! BAD BOY! BAD BOY_!"

Itachi felt something brush against his arm, quickly glancing over to see some of the crowd break away. This was bad. It was one thing to perform and another thing to cause fear in a village. Right now, they couldn't afford to leave a mark for other Shinobi to find. Getting an idea, Itachi raised his hand, clapping loudly as to get everyone's attention. He mustered up a fake smile, easily earning everyone's attention. If he made this look like part of the performance...

Once everyone had stopped running to pay attention, he spoke in a louder tone. "Maybe he is a bad boy, but bad boy's always have something to show, even when others doubt them."

"_WHAT_?" The puppet whirled around, angrily waving its arms around.

"You shouldn't doubt me! I can you show everyone something real cool!" Deidara played along, however enjoying the act far more than Itachi.

The raven made a relieved sigh as everyone directed their gazes on the blond, slowly going back to the show. Some bustling outside of the crowd drew more people in, pushing further to surround the puppet and the bomber. He needed to make a last line though. "A little child maybe."

He molded the clay again, forming two doves. Deidara subtly scowled at Itachi. "Little? I'm an artist, so I'll show everyone art!"

Wings unfurled from their sides, flapping about like that of a bee's before the beauties launched into the sky together, descending high and higher in a tighter and tighter spiral before they finally collided. "Katsu."

_POOF_

An explosion of colours and bright lights floated over the crowd, earning amazed gasps as the glowing chunks floated down harmlessly. Some tiny arms stretched towards the sky, trying to grasp the sparks. Deidara watched as well, swelling with pride at the mass of attention. His blue eye sparkled, mouth open in a smile. _If only danna were here to see this._

Something grasped at his arm, yanking the boy into the crowd. Deidara was quickly dragged along by Itachi, causing him to stumble and trip. After several bumps and squeals, the pair finally made it out into a quieter area, emerging onto a residential area as it seemed. It was empty, save for a few house cats and a single old woman carrying some groceries further down.

"Hey! Why'd you do that!?" He yanked back his arm, pissed at the Uchiha.

"If we stayed any longer, we'd be the centre of attention."

"So? I actually wanted that you know!" Deidara stomped. He earned an exasperated sigh from the other, who simply gazed down at the floor.

"There was something...weird about it. We shouldn't have stayed."

He considered the statement, ticked look leaving his face to be replaced by one of concern. "Hmm..."

Deidara looked around, getting an idea of where the other had just dragged him. He's been here previously, this village was not a new one. Before his master and him arrived to the temple to greet their new member, they had stayed here for a little while. Of course, he didn't know every nook and cranny here yet, but the boy had a general idea of the street layout. Remembering a map he received a few days ago, they'd be at the edge of the village now, with the middle towards the entrance being the shopping district. A river also flowed through, though he couldn't determine if they were near.

"Well, come on." Deidara walked past Itachi, beckoning him.

Luckily, they'd only been on the edge of the road, and the empty street connected to a square where more people bustled. Shops and inn's welcomes visitors, forced smiles plastered on the owners of these places. Itachi's eyes wandered towards the left, noticing a river with a traditional arc bridge built across. Two children broke away from the crowd, darting over it to the other side where more trees were present, disappearing past the brush. The Uchiha recognized one of the kids, grasping a pink plastic flower while the other child carried a soccer ball like a sack of potatoes. Deidara glanced over, catching a glimpse of the youngsters before they had gone.

Both of them exchanged curious glances. Deidara turned away and shrugged, giving the other boy permission to go after them. Without much notice from any of the other citizens, the pair ran off, crossing over the bridge. Itachi halted first, reading a wooden sign that read 'Park' right under a tree.

"You wanna go?"

Itachi turned to his companion, earning a quirked eyebrow. The blond gave him an odd look, obviously iffy on going to a place filled with screaming children.

"I'm just curious." The raven replied, walking further into the forest.

"Okay..."

The two continued on, eventually coming to a pond. Itachi stopped to stare for a few moments, watching a couple of ducks swim around the floating lily pads clustered around the edges. One duckling hopped onto the lily pad and wobbled a little as the plant undulated in the water, causing ripples to disturb their reflections.

The Uchiha heard an impatient grunt from his companion, looking over to see a less than pleased face on Deidara.

"You don't seem happy at all. We're going to park." Itachi smiled.

Deidara frowned and grumbled. "What part of that is supposed to make me happy?"

"Little kids go to the park to play. Don't you want to play with them?"

"I'M NOT A LITTLE KID!"

* * *

"This is nice."

Deidara watched two kids play on the swings, both trying to sway themselves higher and higher. A nice sunny day lead to the park being pretty popular, especially with all the parents talking along the sides while the rest of the children ran around the playground. In the middle, a large dome-shaped jungle-gym was the most favoured by the youngsters, climbing up and down with gleeful smiles.

Both of them sat on a bench, watching everyone else play. Itachi seemed to enjoy this, a strangely nostalgic look on his face. Deidara couldn't really decipher what was so nostalgic about any of this, since he never actually got to play at the playground when he was younger. The blond's head propped up on his arm, staring flatly at the soccer field nearby. "You could say that."

"You want to go play soccer with them?"

Deidara blinked, staring up at his companion. Itachi smiled lightly, a little strange considering the conditions of their first meeting. Even so, that smile seemed too snide for the eleven-year old. "What are you saying?"

Itachi averted his eyes, gazing towards the playground. "You're only eleven, about the age-range of a lot of kids here. Being with the Akatsuki is tiring isn't it? You should take a rest and play. Take your time as a child to be one, not a ninja."

Deidara scoffed. "I'm perfectly happy where I am. Besides, I don't know how to play soccer."

"Oh?" He paused. "My little brother liked to play soccer. It's a fun game."

"Fun?" The blond repeated.

Itach nodded. "There are two teams. Your aim is for your own team to kick the ball into the enemy team's net. You earn a point that way, or win the game depending. Only the goalie can use hands to handle the ball."

"Sounds easy. What's so fun about that?"

The raven hummed, eventually getting up and walking around the blond. Curiously, Deidara got up as well and followed the other, sauntering over towards the open space. As described, two teams could be identified, laughing as they darted around the grassy plain, kicking around a soccer ball. Both stood on the sidelines, watching them play.

One child, swiftly stole the ball from another, winding back his foot before kicking straight into the opposite net. A loud cheer came from about half of the children, throwing their arms up and gloating about their win. The other team looked less pleased, the goalie grumbling to get the ball from the net.

Itachi gestured towards them. "Go, play with them."

"Huh?" Deidara scowled. "I already said, I don't know how to play."

"Sure you do. I just told you how."

The boy hung his arms. "I'm pretty sure there are more rules than that."

"You're just being stubborn." Itachi turned to the children, waving over to them. "Everyone! Over here!"

Deidara jolted, quickly grabbing the Uchiha's arm trying to yank it down. Unfortunately though, it was obvious who was a lot stronger. "What are you doing? Stop!"

"Yeah? What?" The leader of the group caught the ball under his foot, putting his hands on his hips as he made a cocky grin. The other children paused, directing all their eyes onto the pair. Immediately, the eleven-year old was silenced, frozen under the looks of the children. It wasn't that he was scared of them, but from here on, he had the feeling his fate was sealed.

Itachi ignored Deidara, letting his arm drop. It had been a long time since he called out like this, or smiled this way either. _It's wrong, I shouldn't be happy like this_. "My friend here would like to play with you."

The kid smirked, scooping up the ball on one foot and tossing it in the air. He caught it on a finger, spinning it high in the air to show off for everyone else. He challenged the blond, sending a confident look towards him. "That so? How good is she?"

Itachi tilted his head kindly, bangs falling lightly over his face. "Actually, he has never played soccer before, but Deidara learns very fast. Please let him play."

The response provoked some unsure chatter with the children. Deidara lowered his head, hiding himself underneath his bangs. He didn't want to play, he didn't know how to play, so he'd just embarrass himself anyway. Games like these weren't art, it wasn't anything Sasori would be proud of, why should he learn?

One child walked over to their leader. "Hikari, the teams are already even. Six versus Six."

The little boy tapped his chin in thought. "You're right..." He threw one hand up, grinning from ear to ear, a gleam in his eye. "But my team's winning a lot anyway. He'll be on your team, but first!"

He tossed the ball to his other hand. "We'll teach you a few of the basics!"

* * *

_I hate you, Itachi!_ Deidara bit his lip, glaring at the ball at his feet. The other kids surrounded him, a few meters back for safety. He shot a look briefly at the raven, who waved and mouthed 'good luck'. Next to him, the group's leader urged him back, stepping up behind the ball to face the net.

"Let's see how well you kick. Watch me." Hikari -at least, that's what he thought heard, said. He reared his left foot back and eyed the ball, pivoting on the other to add momentum. The ball slid off the ground, shooting into the goal and driving the net back.

_He's left footed._ The eleven-year old noted the quirk on instinct. Most people were right-footed, so he probably took this as an advantage over the other children.

The ball bounced a few times on the soft grass, rolling a few paces from the goal post. Hikari retrieved it and tossed it over to Deidara. "I know I'm good, so try not to get intimidated. Go on, you do it now."

"Psst, Deidara."

The blond blinked, looking around before he saw Itachi lean in from the surrounding children. He whispered, "_Play nice. Don't break the net. Remember, you can't use your hands_."

_Tch! I don't need your help, or your advice. _The blond moved to copy the other child but stopped himself, realizing that it would be a bigger surprise if he kept it for later. He flexed his palm, staring at it. The boy didn't plan on using his hands anyway, they were in a sleeping period, recovering the body while he stayed conscious. _I guess I'll make it look like I'm trying._

He didn't do much other than rear his foot back a little and kick the ball lightly, easily hitting the same mark as Hikari. Looking for some kind of acceptance, he turned to the group, gauging their reactions.

Hikari made a thumbs up. "Good! Now, you need to learn how to dribble!"

Itachi watched from the sidelines, a light breeze coming through the area. His cloak moved against the wind, the breeze allowing for the trees to loose some leaves again. It was almost like everything had gone back to normal, and the past had come back to him. There was no Akatsuki, no Uchiha, no massacre. He knew well enough all those things had happened, and yet it didn't effect this place. People still lived on as they had always did, oblivious to it all.

_"Big brother!"_

_ The boy stepped down from the steps, glancing over to his little brother in the courtyard. A large stone fencing upheld the Uchiha crest, a white fan tipped in red. The little boy waved at him, a big goofy grin on his face as he caught a soccer ball under his foot. The boy looked much like himself, though slightly different. _

_ Itachi quirked an eyebrow. "What's that?"_

_ The child giggled and kicked up his ball, presenting it to him. "It's brand new! There was a game for it, so I learned how to play! This was the prize!"_

_ The raven knelt down, patting the ball's shiny white leather. He looked up to his brother, a light smile on his face. "And you were that good? Sasuke?"_

_ "Yep! It was a little hard at first but it got easy after a while!" Sasuke dropped the ball, dribbling the ball swiftly. "I learned how to do this, and nobody expected it when it moved so fast! I can also-"_

_ He pivoted on one foot, side kicking the ball into the wall just below the family crest. Itachi considered talking to him about that, but decided to leave it, nobody saw anyway. He observed the kick, making a surprised face. "That's really good."_

_ "Am I?" Sasuke grabbed the ball excitedly and bounced over to his older brother, shoving the ball into his stomach. Itachi staggered back a little. _

_ "Come on! Let's play and I can show you what I can really do!"_

_ The boy continued to bounce, however abruptly halted when he felt two hands grasp his shoulder and push him back gently. Both Uchiha came to eye-level, Sasuke's smile disappearing. Itachi made an apologetic face. "I'm sorry Sasuke, but I'm busy today."_

_ "Aw! You're always busy!" Sasuke protested. "Tomorrow?"_

_ Itachi shook his head. "No, I have academy training and a lot of homework. Why don't you play with the other kids?"_

_ The boy smacked his lips and looked up at his brother hopefully. The ball dropped to his feet, forgotten. "Then, can I train with you? I wanna be a ninja too anyway!"_

_ "No, now's the time to be a kid and play. You can start training when you start your academy ninja studies."_

_ Itachi stood up, walking around the youngster. Feeling betrayed, Sasuke whirled around and grasped his brother's shirt. The elder turned around quickly, causing the child to back off and receive a poke to the forehead. Sasuke whined and rubbed the bruise, frowning. _

_ "Sorry Sasuke, maybe next time?"_

Regardless, times like those could never come back. The past was in the past, and he wasn't sure there would ever be a next time. Childhood was a crucial time, crucial to learn and prepare for adulthood, but sometimes, those values are overshadowed, and people forget that being a child, requires time to be one first, to just be a kid. _Things won't ever be the same for us._

Deidara dribbled the ball, easily matching Hikari's display. The boy didn't hide his frustration, finding all of his tricks copied so easily. Itachi found the reaction laughable. _None of us can have any of our childhoods back, but we can still play._

"Alright! Let's play!" Hikari raised the ball into the air, earning cheers from the rest of the group except for their newest player. He pointed at the blond, opening his mouth to speak but no words came out. "You...uh...Deiku? Deitoro?"

"Deidara." The bomber muttered.

"Deidara! You're on the other team!"

_I never did get to play with Sasuke._ Itachi watched everyone gather on their own side of the field, a meter of space in the middle. Goalie's took their stance and the ball thrown into the air.

The blond stood further in the back, adamant on acting as if he didn't want to even receive the ball by shrinking into the background. Deidara didn't know how to play soccer, and he sure as hell wasn't about to play with this kids. He grit his teeth at the thought; then again, he was being forced to play, losing to these kids would be a grand humiliation.

The ball was tossed into the air, quickly falling into the mix of children. A roar of calls and cries rose suddenly, the ball quickly finding itself in Hikari's possession. The boy darted through the masses, dribbling with experience as he weaved and twirled past the opponent. The smirk never left his face, making his way over to Deidara.

The second team leader got in his way, causing a few problems for Hikari as the boy dove and maneuvered for the ball. Deidara was the last line of defense before the goalie, who stood frozen on the spot, sweating slightly at the pressure.

_This is unfair for all of them._

Hikari moved the ball from the right to the left, hoping to get the blond to follow his lead. As expected, that's exactly what the boy did, but with his own twist, he spun backwards just as the ball was passed to the left, quickly moving his own leg in the way and gaining possession of the ball. Deidara ducked under the boy's arm, now behind him while bouncing it skillfully onto his knee and catching it onto his foot.

He earned a cheer from his own team as a well as a scowl from Hikari, who tried to steal the ball back, only to miss several times as the blond let his ninja instincts take over and twisted past.

Deidara kicked the ball up, side-kicking it with his left foot and sent it flying across the field, creating a shock-wave as it did. Everyone quickly ducked out the way, the goalie stood frozen in fear as the ball flew past his shoulder and rammed into the net. It continued to spin rapidly, creating a smoky burn on the rope before friction finally allowed it to fall.

"Hm?" Deidara blinked, leg still raised in the kick. He relaxed his pose, looking over his work. "That was easy."

_Did Sasuke ever play like this?_ Itachi's mind wandered pointlessly. _Probably not, he wasn't a ninja yet._

Hikari's mouth opened in awe. Immediately, he snapped out of his daze and jolted up, pointing directly at their newest player. "Whoa! You got a crazy kick!"

_Danna's Taijutsu training I guess._ The blond ignored their leader, feeling rather down at the mere thought of his master's training. Immediately after the mission to retrieve his forbidden jutsu for the organization, Sasori had started instructing the boy on conduct and asking questions to see what he missed while he wasn't in attendance in the academy. As it turned, out the boy knew a lot about the later education but possessed a very shaky foundation. His ninjutsu skills were extraordinary but his mastery of other skills were lacking greatly. He couldn't do Genjutsu at all, but it wasn't a requirement. Taijutsu on the other hand was a gaping weakness. It was on par with some of the children his own age, but lacked significantly to let himself fight more experienced ninja that would likely come after him in the rogue life. Other than his basic studies in formation and penmanship(which he had no idea why that was even something Sasori wanted him to improve), Taijutsu made up for the majority of the training he learned from the puppeteer. It usually lead to heavy beat downs and even more time spent recovering than usual.

Over time however, his body numbed to the pain as it did to any of the other training he received in Iwagakure. Soon, Deidara could hold his own against Sasori, even though he lost every time. Now, his kick could break boulders and his speed was no longer a problem. Previously, the blond prided himself on being fast, but that speed came at a cost since it would be harder to interpret his surroundings. If he moved too fast, it wouldn't require more than a stuck out foot to cause him to trip and fall.

Sasori didn't seem to like hurting him after everything, but it was a necessary pain that was required for him to grow, and the redhead had been rather merciless after he came to terms with what he would be doing to the boy. Deidara was used to heavy sessions like these, so it hurt him less than the puppeteer probably thought it did. Pain was no stranger to Deidara.

And now, all that pain had given him amazing soccer skills.

* * *

**A/N: ****Another thing. I'm heading out on vacation in the next week for a bit so there won't be any updates meanwhile. Please enjoy!**

**Please review if you'd like! Nice to meet ya!**


	32. Take a Rest Part 2

**Take a Rest (Part 2)**

__I'll beat him this time! __Hikari slid down below the wall of children, slipping through to try and steal the ball from the blond. Deidara easily sidestepped and kicked the ball into the air out of their leader's reach. The ball fell onto his chest, and the child had it his possession again, swiftly twisting past the other players to the net. The goalie stayed poised, predicting another kick above the torso. The eleven-year old calmly changed tactics and kicked the ball into the ground, causing to skid and slide across the field.

Again, it slipped by the goalie and collided with the net. The underdog team fist-pumped into the air, cheering loudly for their newest player. Deidara smirked, feeling rather pumped at all these wins. Soccer wasn't so hard, though he did lose the ball a few times, working around those techniques were exactly like countering battle techniques.

The other team grunted and complained, no longer having as much fun as they had used to be. Hikari was the most frustrated, no regretting ever letting the eleven-year play at all. The village boy had used all of his tricks and now had nothing left up his sleeve. There was no way that the blond never played soccer before.

Point after point, Deidara's team went from underdog to top dog in the matter of a few quick games. Itachi noticed from the sidelines as things began to look more and more lopsided. Nobody was having fun anymore, not while their attempts were quickly blasted away by the invincible player that was Deidara.

Deidara tossed the ball and caught it on his head, balancing it with new-found confidence. "Eight to one, wanna play again?"

Hikari sweated. Of course he wanted to try, but was it worth it? Who was this new kid anyway? Coming into their game like that and stealing his glory? One more game, one more and he was throwing this child out of the match if he scored again. Hikari made a fist, "Okay! One more!"

"Excuse me."

Everyone turned to the sidelines, spying Itachi standing there with his hand raised into the air politely. The raven made a kind smile, the kind that Deidara didn't like. Something was up with him.

The Uchiha put down his arm and sauntered into the field. "May I play too?"

"Butt out!" Deidara barked. "You wanted _me_ to play! Never said anything about you playing!"

"Well, I suddenly felt like playing." Itachi shrugged and turned to Hikari. "So, can I?"

The boy regarded the next newest player. His main concern was that the raven seemed a few year older than everyone here, older than even the blond. Regardless of age though, he always decided the teams, and since one team had one too many, perhaps it was time to even out the odds.

Hikaru beckoned their newest addition. "Okay, but you play on my team."

"I would like that."

Gladly, the Uchiha moved opposite of Deidara, eyeing him in particular. This wiped the smile off of the blond's face, infuriated by the new arrangement. Unfortunately, he didn't have any solid reasons to prevent the Akatsuki into playing, and as far as he knew, the bomber was the only one on this field that had a chance of standing up to Itachi.

"No eye tricks." Deidara warned his opponent, earning a rather puzzled reaction from the other children.

"It wouldn't be a fun game if I used it."

A circle blocked out the sun, descending onto the field as the ball. Hikari moved and caught it first, stepping to side allowing another player to slip and fall onto the ground. He bounced the ball in an arc, losing his pursuers in the mess of his own team before making a B-line for the opponents Goalie. An unwelcomed body nearly rammed into him, blond hair immediately indicating who it was. Hikari tried to move around but felt his foot kick the air, looking down quickly to realize the ball had been stolen.

"Sucker!" Deidara called out, sticking his tongue out rudely at the children's leader before advancing towards the other net.

Itachi quickly obstructed his path, wiping the grin off of his face as Deidara resorted to a bit of rough play to get the Uchiha out of his way. The boy tried to bounce the ball onto his chest and avoid the Akatsuki's range, only to fail as Itachi hit it once with his head, sending the ball high into the air.

Both ninja jumped for it, Itachi making it there first and aimed it towards the opponents goal. Sidekicking it, the ball was abruptly caught in the crook of Deidara's foot and he flipped mid-air, hoping to get it past the nuisance that was the newest Akatsuki.

The ball went back and forth between both parties, the young players below only able to watch and wait for the scuffle to end as two of their best moved at a rapid speed, so fast it was hard to keep track with their eyes.

The pair landed and bounded again, legs raised and twisting like screws in order to get the fastest kick in first. Deidara clenched his jaw, finding that the Uchiha's superior height was getting him an advantage. The two clashed, the curves of their foots collided into each other. The blond ignored the ball just out of his reach, sliding his own leg around Itachi's in hopes of locking him in place to create a foothold for himself. The plan went awry as he was suddenly flipped upside-down, Itachi being stronger and eventually getting the upper hand, smashing the ball harshly into the opponents net.

It whizzed past the child's neck, creating a current of wind as it went. The goalie remained wide-eyed, shakily glancing over his shoulder to see the black burn on the net that the soccer ball created.

"Damn!" Deidara cried out, glaring daggers at the Uchiha before pulling out a kunai, swiping it at the enemy player to force him away.

Itachi quickly let go of Deidara, freeing them both to land calmly on the grassy plain.

Expressions paled around the field at the sight of the knife, children crying out and screaming in fear. Itachi sighed while Deidara looked around frantically, wondering what he had done now. It took a few seconds but the reason finally clicked in the blond's head, quickly discarding the kunai in his clothes and forcing a blank face.

"I-I told you! I can't play this game!" Deidara pointed accusingly at the other boy.

* * *

Back to the bench, both boys sat and watched the children play in the park. They had been pushed out of the soccer field and now remained idle. Deidara's eye twitched, unable to take the fulfilled look on the others face. They had just been kicked out for crying out loud! How the heck could Itachi look so happy?

With nothing else, the blond turned to him. "You look happy, it's weird."

"Of course I'm happy. It's been a long time since I got to play a game."

Deidara quirked an eyebrow at him. He sighed and focused his attentions on an ant emerging from a crack in the gravel, travelling away from the two. "It was...sort of fun."

"My little brother liked soccer for a short time." Itachi spoke nostalgically. It was less of an explanation than it was ramblings to himself. "He told me he played well, though that stopped once he entered a new grade in the academy. After that, he always bothered me about training him, not playing with him."

The Uchiha tilted his head towards the sky, imagining the scene now, having dinner with his family, his younger brother always stealing his food. Back then, he was only a young lad himself so his parents didn't nag them about it yet. His mother would laugh quietly while his father tried to ignore them, eating silently at the table.

"Uh..."

Itachi glanced over to Deidara. Blue eyes stayed averted, playing with his sleeve as the boy shifted in his seat. It took a while but eventually, the blond mustered up the question, flushing embarrassingly. "Do you...what's it like to have a brother?"

The Uchiha blinked, pondering the question. "Well, it's nice, for me that is. Being a lot older, I always had more of my parents attention. My little brother bothered me a lot to spend time with him. Sometimes we argued, but usually over the smallest things like who got to the use the bathroom first or forgetting things. My little brother didn't like me as much, he was a bit jealous of how our parents treated me. We never did get a lot of time together, and now, I wished I spent a little more time with him rather than my studies. We got along quite well compared to others."

Deidara leaned forward. "Is it not usually like that?"

Itachi shook his head. "No, most siblings despise each other. When I think about it, we had it well compared to other families, but I tended to forget about the smaller things. I was always kept busy and left my brother in the dust." He paused and made a solemn smile. "Now, I wish I agreed to play that game with him. One game is enough."

The blond stared at him for a moment, then leaned back into the bench and retorted. "Well, they're all dead now so there's no point in wishing for it." He rocked in his seat, smirking snidely. "And it was _all_ thanks to you!"

Itachi kept silent, head bowed with a bleak look. Deidara pursed his lips, glancing over before he returned his smile, a more honest one. "That's good! Don't forget those times!"

This seemed to pique the thirteen-year old's curiosity, both children now locking gazes. The subordinate giggled and pulled out a clay bird with an incredibly simple design from his sleeve. He held it in his hand. "This is my art, but it's more than this. Danna always had some sort of saying to his own art, so I made one up myself!"

Deidara raised his bird. "They're like memories. We always have them, whether they're sad or happy. The happy are the good ones, and the best part is that they're gone!"

It unfurled from the palm, flexing its wings before darting into a tight spiral above them towards the blue sky. The boy made a one-handed seal, keeping his eyes on the bird before it exploded in a small 'poof', coloured sparks rained down harmlessly, a tiny firework.

"Everyone has some time in their life they miss, something they want back. That's when we learn to appreciate that time we had. It was short, but beautiful, and once it's gone, we remember it forever!" Deidara turned to Itachi. "We're not little kids anymore, so we can't play like them. We can try, but we can't get what used to be back. It's gone, it's never coming back, not the same anyway. After that, we get sad and cry over it, because we realize how beautiful it was."

The blond's wild expression softened, staring down at the ant at their feet. "I see it a lot. When we try to play with the kids, it doesn't come out the way we wanted it. We're different now, and no matter how hard we try, we can't get it back."

"_It_ being how things used to be?" Itachi suggested.

Deidara hummed. "Sort of, it could be a lot of things. Even now, this won't last. Someday, I'm going to die; Danna's going to die; you're going to die; everyone's gonna die!" He threw his hands into the air enthusiastically, energy returning. "Danna says he'll last forever but he's wrong! Everyone dies! Every single one of us!"

The raven sat there, wide-eyed. Had he just heard that from a kid? A child much younger than himself? No, they weren't kids, not little ones as he said. He pondered the idea, the idea of death causing something to sink in his chest. "If I'm going to die...I want it to be for my family."

The bomber looked at him strangely for moment. "But they're all dead, you killed them." He turned and fiddled with some more clay, rather happy that his hands were too sleepy to do anything with it. "Hmm...I guess if I want to die..."

His face contorted into a puzzled look, mind coming to a blank. "I don't know how I want to die."

"You shouldn't be thinking about that anyway, you're still young." Itachi said.

"You're young too, but we're rogues right? We're gonna die." Deidara laughed. "I can't imagine being an old man like this. I'd be killed way too easily."

The raven nodded and blinked slowly. Both children turned to each other to continue the conversation, but stopped briefly when they heard the sounds laughter and chatter die down. Toys were discarded onto the floor while parents and the youngsters alike directed their stares towards the entrance of the park.

A silence broke when wooden tapping could be heard, a spring stretched while the puppet spun its head to gaze about the crowd. The familiar blandly robed puppeteer stood behind it, jaw moving in sync as it voiced the character.

The puppet raised its arm. "Hello everyone! I'm just looking for a good little boy with black hair. Has anyone seen this person?"

Deidara stiffened at the sight of the puppet. It directly chose Itachi out of the crowd back there, but why would it want him? What was so great about the guy? He eyed his companion, who kept his gaze averted from the puppeteer across the park. At first, the blond thought it was an innocent hunch that the performers had that the Uchiha was sure to put up a good show, but to pursue them this far? What was over was over wasn't it?

Well, now wasn't a good time to stick around. Deidara shifted his foot and tapped it against Itachi's, getting his attention. The boy whispered something and they both nodded.

"Where is he? I need him to perform for my show!"

The puppet gazed over the crowd, settling on a few raven-haired children but didn't deem them as the one it wanted. Dramatically, it pulled up a stubby arm and shielded its beady white eyes, humming while it looked. Its gaze fell onto a bench in the corner, empty.

"Huh. I swear there was somebody over there."

* * *

Kisame tread along a stone path just outside of the village, walled in with trees lush and green. Samehada rattled in satisfaction, scales cleaned of any residue left over from previous victims or waterborne parasites.

His mind still lingered on the events earlier today. Having just been walking around, there suddenly seemed to be a huge fuss elsewhere in the village, the people filing in to get a closer look from the streets and some other curious onlookers gazing out their windows and balconies. It took a while but the noise had finally died down, and Kisame was left with two hours to do as he pleased.

Two figures landed a little ways away from him, a familiar pair. Kisame paused and looked on curiously.

Deidara exhaled loudly. "That thing's getting pretty annoying."

Itachi nodded in agreement, face slightly contorted with concern. Upon noticing his partner, the shark took is as the okay to approach them, eventually earning the attention of both children. The blond made an inquisitive grunt, noticing him as well.

"What are you up to?" Kisame asked.

Both children exchanged anxious looks, making a silent agreement before Itachi shook his head and spoke for the pair. "Nothing. We just had a strange...run-in with some villagers."

"Strange?" Kisame cocked his head.

The two looked at each other again, practically discussing something silently. Kisame waited silently on the spot, not quite sure what the hell was going on. Was this the kind of treachery that people described of kids? Secretly planning their master manipulation plan and putting it under a guise? Well, these two were a little more than two little boys, so he couldn't immediately assume that.

Deidara scratched his head once they finished, carrying on the conversation. "You don't mind if we stick around you right?"

"Hm?" Kisame tapped his chin in thought. "I guess not." He made a toothy grin. "As long as I'm not bothered, I don't mind."

* * *

_"Itachi."_

_ The older glanced over, observing his little brother press his face against the window shop. Several foods were on display, grilled chicken, takoyaki and other delicious dishes were lined up and steaming with heat. Sasuke's nose was squished even further as the child's eyes widened, stomach grumbling. _

_ Sasuke looked to his brother with an eager smile. "Let's go in and get some rice-balls!"_

_ The older Uchiha pondered the idea, mainly calculating how much time this would take before they had to head home. Itachi had to demonstrate the results of his training to his father today, mainly on his newly learned fireball technique. Granted they'd buy rice-balls only and his brother didn't ask for more like candy or gum, then the trip should be quick. _

_ "Please?" Sasuke begged, stomach growling again. _

_ Itachi sighed. "Okay, but you're using your own money."_

_ The eager look fell from Sasuke's face. He fished his pockets only to come up with nothing. He pleaded again with his older brother. "I didn't bring any. Can you?..."_

_ "Then we're not buying any."_

_ "Come on! Big brother!" Sasuke pouted, clinging onto Itachi's shirt. His lip quivered, threatening to cry in public. _

_ Itachi opened his mouth to assert himself but caved at the sight of his sibling's puppy-face. It was only rice-balls. Sasuke loved them anyway so it wasn't like it would be a waste. _

_ "Do you promise to pay me back?"_

_ "Uh-huh! Totally!" Sasuke revived his grin, no longer threatening tears. Big eyes intensely stared at Itachi, leaving no room for argument. _

_ "Okay, okay, let go." Itachi gently pushed his little brother away from him, slightly regretting trusting a five-year old to pay him back with his parent's allowance. _

_ Taking his hand, the two Uchiha's moved from the window and to the door, entering the shop. Immediately upon entering, Sasuke eyed some candy, pointing at it and pleading his elder brother to buy some of it as well._

"Um..."

The sound awoke Itachi from his trance. He gazed over to Deidara, who looked at him oddly. The blond seemed to do that a lot, though the raven couldn't blame him since he considered himself acting a little strange once he entered the Akatsuki. Paranoia perhaps?

Deidara glanced at the window shop, Kisame not too far away. He pointed at the rice-balls on display and raised a brow. "...You want some of those?"

He somewhat frantically switched between the food on display and the subordinate in confusion. Caught in a memory, he didn't realize what he had been doing. "No. I'm good."

"You sure?" Deidara quirked his voice a little. "You were staring at those for a few minutes. I thought was supposed to get a hint or something."

"How long?" The raven blinked in surprise.

"About five." He stepped towards the shop door. "I mean, it's a break, if you want to eat something..."

Itachi stared at the rice-balls, noting how long it had been since he had some himself. After humming a little in thought, he shrugged and fished under his cloak. "Alright."

He pulled out some money and offered it to Deidara, who was taken aback by the gesture. "Use my money, so I don't have to pay you back."

The blond blinked. "Hold on. I'm a rogue like the Akatsuki."

"It's fine." Itachi smiled lightly, black eyes flashing red. The other stiffened at the sight and raised a hand to take the money. "If you steal it, I'll make sure to make _you _pay."

_Scary..._ Deidara shrunk back, hand held up in slight fear. Both he and his hand mouths frowned at the gesture, displeased with how this was going. This was turning into more of a threat than a friendly favour. He huffed and averted his gaze apprehensively, taking the money and entering the store to get it over with. Deidara would rather not get stuck in another genjutsu.

After taking the change, the blond made it out and handed two wrapped rice-balls to Itachi. Itachi tore one open, savouring the smell. Sasuke liked these quite a bit, their mother used to always pack them for his lunch at the academy.

Deidara wasn't finished being apprehensive. A woman walked by with her dog, tying it to a post while she did some shopping. The dog stood idly, staring back at the blond. Itachi noticed this, and returned the odd look.

"It's a dog."

Deidara grumbled, voice laced with sarcasm. "No duh, it's a cat."

The Uchiha inspected it from a distance, quickly identifying it as the Shiba Inu breed with white fur. It was probably the smaller kind, either that or a puppy only a few months old. Regardless of those things, the canine's happy-go-lucky appearance didn't seem to go well with the bomber.

"Is something wrong with it?" Itachi asked again.

"N-no...just..." Deidara shivered at those beady eyes, a phobia-like fear rising within. "Bad experience with dogs...or puppies." He forced a smile. "Let's just go."

Itachi decided not to pry and whispered to himself. "Thank you for the food." Taking a bite of the rice-ball, the two headed off to follow Kisame, his unique colour height easily giving him away from the rest of the crowd. People seemed to avoid him, though the shark didn't seem to mind.

* * *

At the lake all over again, Deidara wasn't present this time, having gone off to find his danna. Itachi sat under the torii, consuming the last piece of his rice-ball. The other one was tucked away in his cloak for a later meal. The Uchiha stood and up took a last look at his partner, busy feeding the sharks with small chunks of meat out of a bucket. Kisame tossed one up and the water's surface would break out in a frenzy, one or two sharks breaching the lake in a jump to snatch the steak out the air.

Mind blank on Sasori's warnings, Itachi ventured up the steps, hoping to find their leader or Konan at the temple summit. He needed to know some things, but it wasn't a complete loss if they weren't there.

Reaching the temple, Itachi glanced around the courtyard, remembering when he first arrived to receive his cloak from the organization leader, Pein. The man thought himself as a god, and didn't hide his status of Amegakure's ruler to his underlings. His very aura radiated authority, boasting a charisma that certainly made him the kind of person to earn followers. Itachi would need to be careful around him.

He moved up the steps and poked a head in to find the meeting room empty. He stepped inside and began to knock the walls. Perhaps Konan would arrive if he made some noise.

...

No response followed. Either Pein and Konan had returned to Amegakure or they were out of earshot. Itachi sensed a barrier here, so his entrance should have set it off. With no reaction however, it seemed that it was no longer put to any use.

_Knock_

_ Knock_

A few seconds passed with no response. No footfalls in the hallway or paper messages flying in through the doors. Itachi stared at his hand, noting his lack of ring on a bare finger. All the other Akatsuki seemed to have one. A cause for concern, was he no accepted into the organization yet? Even as he was ignorant of their purpose, those rings seemed to be important somehow if even leader himself bore one. Did he not officially earn his place in the Akatsuki like he was told?

He turned with red eyes, warily glancing around the empty temple. A gecko watched from above, quirking its head at the visitor before scurrying off towards the corner of the ceiling.

"Hoho! So this is where you were!"

A tiny wooden head bounced its jaw on a string, peeking over Itachi's shoulder. Immediately, the Uchiha whirled around and swiped a kunai at it. The puppet swung back by its threads, landing on the floor. Its binds came in from the door, the puppeteer probably controlling it from the outside.

Itachi held a kunai up, squinting at the strings. With the sharingan, he could see a faint blue aura wafting off of it, evidence of chakra. Light reflected off of the threads, a bright glare revealing them as wire. Wires weren't desirable as puppet material, their sturdiness making them good traps but far less flexible than regular string or thread. However, wrapped in chakra, it could be manipulated.

The puppet wobbled its head, eyes rolling around in their sockets. It held up a stubby hand. "Now that there's nobody to disturb us, please come along! Perform for us!"

It wobbled again, head finally crooked to reveal its neck behind the dress collar. Itachi blinked, staring at the logo. A stylized red scorpion encased in a matching red diamond.

* * *

**A/N: New arc: vaguely planned out. I got a basic map of it but I got no prediction powers to what I'll write in between. I had a bit of trouble writing Deidara's (sort of) view on art. The rest is over by the next chapter! In my fanfiction, I tend to make things big, even small events in the canon.**

**Rice balls are onigiri. They were Sasuke's favorite food.**

**I'll be gone for a bit on a short vacation, so expect some changes in my past chapters such as grammar or extra details that I forgot to write in. I won't be completely rewriting anything anymore, Little Artist is being completed as it is.**

**Please review if you'd like! Nice to meet you all! Happy late Birthday Kakuzu!(Sorry, I had no place for him in the chapter, too early for his arc)**


	33. Suspicions

**Suspicions**

__Click__

__ Clack__

__ Click, click__

Small twitches of the body created a scratchy clicking that echoed throughout the room. Itachi remained poised with his kunai in the air, eyeing the logo. No lamps lit up the space, creating a shadowy atmosphere within the temple.

That logo. It was Sasori's wasn't it? It wouldn't take a genius to figure out that it was his signature, since his name corresponded well with the image. Red hair plus the placement of the logo further indicated it was his. Deidara did mention that Sasori had disappeared as of recently, no one concerned with his whereabouts. He clenched the kunai tighter, eyes narrowing. The pinwheel pattern twitched and spun threateningly. An Akatsuki plot? The blond was only a subordinate so he couldn't immediately assume he knew about it as well if this was all it turned out to be.

The tiny puppet beckoned again, stubby arm bobbing on the wire string. Its mouth moved slightly in a subtle click. "Come with us." It whispered.

Itachi refused to move.

It reared its head back, shiny metal blades slicing out from its jaw holes. Its eyes rolled into an alternate blood-shot red while chakra burst from the stubby ends of its arms. It clacked harshly, body twitching viciously as wires erupted from the nubby appendages. The five strings strung out from its arms, creating claw-like spindly fingers. The wires curved inwards, trapping Itachi inside the room.

"_IF YOU WON'T COME TO US, WE'LL TAKE YOU_!" The backstage puppeteer screamed.

In rush, the wires darted and snaked about the room. Itachi dodged one on his left and swerved around another. Genjutsu didn't work on puppets, and with no puppeteer in sight, it would be hard to cast one without the subject.

Itachi disappeared and reappeared onto a wall. The puppet searched about frantically with the wires, still stunned by the sudden absence to realize. He thrust the kunai into the wall to keep it there, weaving hand seals.

He finished off with the tiger symbol and leaned back, chest rising as he inhaled the air. "_Fire style: Fireball Jutsu_."

After cupping a hand around his mouth, a rush of flame flew out from his lips, gathering in size to form a giant orb. The fire roared as it crashed through the building, consuming the room in a fierce bright blaze.

The fire emptied from his chest, letting Itachi rest for a moment as he watched the puppets silhouette fizz in the shadow of the roaring inferno. Sparks flew out from the body, harmlessly crackling the wooden room. The fire began to lurch and separate, weakening as five thin lines snaked out of it, striking at the Uchiha.

Itachi gripped his kunai again and attempted to counter one of the wire fingers, failing as it only coiled tightly around his kunai. Itachi tried to yank himself away but felt a sharp tightening around his legs, another insanely hot metal wire searing his other wrist. Itachi held back a hiss, as if a jagged blade had sliced into his skin. A smoke wafted off of his skin, reddening due to the heat searing into his flesh. Some blood trickled down his arm, bubbling and hardening faster in the flame's presence.

Trapped, the fire continued to rage on the spot, no sign of dying down. He figured he could take the advantage of the puppets build, being wooden, a fire would shut it down pretty quickly. However, wire didn't burn up so easily; not only that, but like normal chakra threads, could not be cut so easily. The air began to become heavy, weighing down on his breathing. It felt as if a pound of weight was dropped onto his chest, his ribs further agonized by the wires that coiled about his torso and threatened to slice further in.

"_Water style: water shark bullet_."

The flames rushed back, flattened by a sudden rush of liquid. Before Itachi's eyes, a humongous transparent shark crashed into the inferno, a sizzling sound followed by hisses of the dying fire followed afterwards. Another cry rang out, a less shaped voice of the puppeteer. The wires remained strong however, tearing into the shark and causing it to liquify once again, jaws shredded to pieces as it fell to the floor in a heap, dispersing in a wave of water.

Itachi stared at the scene, ignoring the searing hot pain from the wires that held him. In the middle of the room stood his partner, the tall shark he came to know as Kisame Hoshigaki. He stood cockily, Samehada raised over his shoulder. His clothes dripped wet from the water, though it didn't appear to bother Kisame at all. With a snide smirk, he turned to the wire holds and brought down his sword, easily snapping the threads upon contact.

The coils loosened and fell from his wrists. Itachi jerked violently, threads mildly pulling at his flesh as they were cut. He nearly fell to his knees but caught himself, refusing to look weak in front of his peer. Itachi stood up again, cursing slightly at the new-found burn wounds around his wrists and ankles. Bringing a wrist up to his lips, he blew on it and turned back to his partner, mouth open in awe.

Samehada hit he floor with a heavy thud that rang out throughout the building. Kisame looked over, acknowledging the wounds. The grin returned to his face. "Hehe, hey, if you're gonna have fun, tell me about it too. I wouldn't want to miss out."

Itachi eyed the mighty sword, it rattled again but in a displeased manner. His eyes remained activated, noticing the pissed fluctuation of Samehada's chakra.

"A terrible meal eh?" Kisame spoke to his sword, which rattled in agreement. His grin widened. "That wasn't a whole lot of chakra."

The puppet twitched again, drenched in water. Its parts creaked and screeched loudly as the metal parts ground while damp. It twitched forward, a cup-full of water spilling forth from its hinged jaw. Some oil seeped from its joints, causing them to become more rigid and squeaky.

Itachi considered his question, finally deciding it couldn't hurt. "How did you cut those wires? Your sword isn't a chakra blade."

Kisame hoisted it onto his shoulder and sauntered towards the puppet, watching the threads tighten as it tried to move normally. "Samehada can not only donate chakra to heal but absorb chakra, consume it like that blade your spoke of. I could easily absorb the pathetic amount of chakra in those threads, and Samehada has no problem whatsoever breaking thin wire after that's been done."

He regarded his elder partner for a moment, then turned to the stunned puppeteer just outside of the temple. The performer stood there, completely still until his fingers jerked slightly, breaking the threads and discarding the marionette from his control. He turned and ran, bounding into the woods beyond the courtyard.

Kisame pivoted on his foot but paused to look at his partner. "Should we?"

The raven closed his eyes and nodded.

* * *

He stood there, cornered by the pair against the lake. The puppeteer looked over his shoulders only to find the lake infested with sharks, pointed fins making their rounds by the shore. Kisame and Itachi stood before him, staring down their opponent.

"What's a puppeteer without his puppets? Pretty ill-prepared to have only one." Kisame taunted.

The shark-man huffed confidently and began to approach his newest victim, swinging his massive sword about the area. It swept above the floor, creating a blanketed wind that blasted throughout the space and even pushed back some of the waves. "I'll take care of this one."

"Hm." Itachi replied simply. He observed his partner step forward. The watery blue lake in the background making a nicer scene it should have been. Pretty soon, this could very well turn into a blood bath be it the sharks got to the body. A rogue wave in the lake lapped up quickly across the waters surface, lighter in colour than the rest of it. Itachi disregarded it until he spied the wave fade into the mountains in the distance, pulsating with an aura.

_Chakra threads?_ Itachi's face contorted slightly, on edge about their new opponent. Another thread came up, apparently originating from the puppeteer. Itachi blinked and moved to warn his partner, muscles tensing.

"It's a puppet! Kisame!"

"Huh?"

Before both could react, the puppeteer clicked and clattered, movements becoming less organic as it twisted its head. It clawed off the cloth covering its face, revealing a wooden one, eyes glassy with its eyes moving erratically. Its jaw dropped open and began to spit out senbon. Itachi responded by focusing his sharingan, easily dodging the projectiles with ease but ended up being pushed back at the same time, creating more and more distance between him and the puppet.

Kisame shielded himself with Samehada, the thick hide of the sword simply deflecting the senbon needles and bounced them elsewhere.

The barrage finished quickly. Immediately, Itachi appeared in front of the puppet and kicked it into the water, sending it into the water where it was quickly swarmed by the pack of sharks. Kisame joined in, quickly waving his sword around to cut the remaining threads.

With a violent cracking sound, the puppet was reduced to the pieces. It took a few seconds but the sharks eventually realized the lack of flesh, dispersing from the area and leaving the wooden parts to float on shore line. Rippling water calmed, dorsal fins returning to the red docks in the distance.

Kisame gazed around, presumably looking for the puppeteer of the puppeteer. The very idea itself was confusing, but it was what it was, and the guy didn't feel like discussing the topic.

Itachi scooped up the puppets head and began to shake it a little, pouring out the water that began to reside inside of its hollow head. The grey hood slipped off the puppets head, revealing some fresh scars from the shark attack. A hole was cracked into the skull, breaking the wooden cranium easily. Itachi gazed it it for a moment, then flipped it upside-down to look at the neck.

Like the other one, it also bore the scorpion symbol, though a little more weathered than the other, chipping slightly. Itachi frowned.

"I thought this was a ploy by the Akatsuki at first."

Kisame glanced over, making a puzzled expression. He noticed the emotion that showed on Itachi's face, more innocent and childish than the stoic one he put on. The guise seemed to be breaking, and the lack of restraint only told him that Itachi had become more comfortable.

The Uchiha boy held onto the head and locked gazes with his older partner. "I didn't have a ring like the rest of you, so I wondered if I had gained your trust. I came to the temple to ask about it, but then that happened."

Itachi remained silent for a moment. He averted his gaze shyly, a smile tugging at his lips. "I'm not sure how much I can thank you for helping me."

"Like I said, it's no problem."

He looked up again, earning a toothy grin from his new partner. Samehada rattled, happily this time. "Sasori tasked me with looking after your two after all, though it was only for yesterday. You're not just a mere kid, you're also my partner. Partner's work together. That also means preserving each others lives."

Kisame held up a hand, displaying his own ring on his left ring finger, a yellow colouring on this one with the word (put kanji here) imprinted. "These rings are simply a sign that you've become a valued member of the Akatsuki. Granted when you survive long enough, you will earn your own with time. It ties us to this organization, like a 'marriage' you could say. We also use these rings to enter our bases scattered around the land. It's another reason why new members don't get paired together, since we still need to report. Some members who have displayed their skills before joining the organization sometimes get their rings immediately."

Itachi knelt down to pick up another floating piece of of the puppet. The wood looked old, though still well maintained. He gathered it with the other parts and turned his sharingan elsewhere, unable to identify any other chakra signatures in the area. Whoever was controlling this puppet definitely wasn't dumb enough to stick around.

A faint trail of a blue hue floated on the water, drifting slowly apart but were close enough to form a distinguishable line. Itachi dropped the extra pieces onto the water except the head, keeping the logo as evidence. The other pieces were quite pointless right now. "I can follow the chakra trail." He glanced up at his partner, looking for a response.

Kisame lifted the sword onto his shoulder and turned to head in that direction. "Let's go then."

* * *

Covered by a thick of branches, a wide gate embedded into the ground below, slightly sunken into the earth. Two stone snakes were carved into the doors decoratively, metal bodies slightly worn and patches of the paint had long since been flaking off. Both snakes held their jaws open, revealing their fangs at each other. A faint storming ocean design was welded into the doors, alternating between wood and a bronze steel. With it's shabby appearance, no doubt would it be hard to find. Anyone else who had stumbled upon it would probably pass it off as some old bunker.

Itachi followed the trail up to the doors, the faint hue narrowed its distance and ran into the crack between the gates. There was no doubt about it, this was where it was coming from.

They gave it a good look over before Itachi suggested something. "Is it...the Akatsuki's?"

Kisame shook his head. "No, there's no base in this location. From the looks of it, I'd it's Orochimaru's or someone along those lines."

The shark pondered going in. Even then, Kisame had no idea of the pale-man's capabilities in comparison to his own, so he couldn't determine whether or not it was a good choice to investigate. Normally, he'd fight anyone on any occasion, but right now, he wasn't alone, and he wasn't sure what would come of Itachi's sudden unforeseen demise. Itachi was his first partner in a long time after all.

"Let's not go in just yet." The Akatsuki finally decided and took a pace back from the door. Kisame leaned Samehada on a tree and fished his sleeves, pulling out a large roll of white bandages in one hand and taking his sword in the other. "For now, it's probably best if we just report this to Leader." He grinned. "Don't get me wrong, I'd love to fight whoever is inside, but it's not a even a mission, so we'll make ourselves a safety net with the organization before we take any kind of initiative."

* * *

"Sho he wash a puffet?" Deidara tried to speak through clenched teeth, holding a kunai in his mouth while his hands were full. His hands remained obediently quiet while he held shuriken in both hands. The boy stood on a high branch, several targets bought from nearby stores were set up in the surrounding area. He flipped into the air, descending head-first as the boy quickly twisted and fanned out the ninja stars, sliding them apart to reveal three in each hand. With a calculated glance, the blond sliced one hand up towards the sky, sending two in one direction and the last behind his back. Flipping around upright, he used his momentum to send another two in the other direction and shot the last one out towards the shuriken behind his back. It changed direction quickly upon collision.

Landing on the ground with ease, several thuds surrounded the area and a single klang and clattering. Deidara spat out the kunai into his own hand and gazed at his work. The initial two shuriken hit the general spot, in the second ring around the red dot in the middle of the target. The others were a little lopsided but would be considered expertly thrown if he were to look at them from academy standards. Deidara turned to the last few ones, disappointed to see that two didn't make it to their targets, strewn across the forest floor.

Itachi sat under one of the targets, legs crossed and Akatsuki cloak unbuttoned as he reclined back against the tree trunk. He nodded. "Yes. I followed the trail with my Sharingan and it lead to a hideout. Kisame said it might be Orochimaru's since it had snakes on it but it could be anyone else."

"Nope." Deidara bent over and picked up his two shuriken. With a frustrated grunt, he threw them into the targets, hitting the red dot easily. The achievement was underwhelming since the blond was standing still. While in motion, his shuriken rarely ever hit the target dead-on. He was still in practice. "If there are snakes, it Orochimaru's alright."

Itachi blinked. "You're sure?"

"Completely." The bomber answered quickly and crossed his arms. "He loves snakes and puts them on everything. It's like Sasori no danna's scorpions, they're kinda like a..._signature_ I think."

_Scorpion's huh?_ Itachi considered informing Deidara about the logo, but knew better than that. Already, it was blatantly obvious what the boy thought of his master, and would definitely not tolerate the news he had to give, probably the first to defend Saosir's case if anything. For now, Deidara would be kept in the dark for as long as possible.

"Well, Leader knows about it now. We were told he'd deal with it on his own."

Deidara stood on the tips of his toes, extending an arm out to reach a shuriken on a target. With one last jump, his finger hit the edge, knocking the ninja star out of the slit. The blond backed off and dodged the falling shuriken, picking it up off the ground. He scoffed and smiled. "If Sasori no danna were there, I bet he would've taught that guy something about puppets."

The Uchiha stared at the boy, face contorting in pity. "I'm...sure he would have."

"Deidara."

"Yeah?" The blond turned to his companion. Itachi stood from his spot and helped out with gathering the ninja stars, taking one off the target by his head. "How loyal are you to Sasori?"

Deidara quirked an eyebrow. "What?"

"I mean. You seem to talk about him a lot. Sasori is your master, and you seem to like him more than anyone else."

The boy dropped his shuriken into a weapon's pouch attached to his belt, around the back. "I'd do a lot for him if that answers your question." Deidara hummed thoughtfully, letting his eyes wander. "Danna's always been there for me since we met. He trains me and keeps watch at night. Though, he pretty weird sometimes and doesn't know how to hug properly." He grimaced at the memory. "Still does. Though, he's also really powerful, and barely anyone challenges him to a fight. He's always working though, so he never wants to do anything with me. I usually train alone."

_"Big brother."_

_ The older made a silent sigh and raised his head, turning to look at his younger sibling. Sasuke held both arms behind his back nervously, bandages wrapped around the shins of his legs to protect them, a sign of advancement in shinobi training. The boy made a sheepish smile. "Do you...um, think you could help me with me out with my shuriken jutsu after school today?"_

_ Itachi blinked. "No, I can't. I'm busy. Why don't you go ask father to help you?"_

_ This earned a displease expression from the little boy. "Oh come on. You're way better at the shuriken jutsu than father is. I mean, even I can see that."_

_ "Big brother? Why do you always treat me like such a pest? You're always busy."_

"Don't say that." Itachi handed the shuriken to Deidara, letting him put it away. "I'm sure he wouldn't mind spending time with you. He just has a lot of work to do. Puppets need maintenance."

Deidara glared and retorted. "What do you know? I don't need your advice. You killed family in cold blood." He made a mocking smirk. "You're having regrets?"

The Uchiha remained silent. This earned a satisfaction from the blond, who easily sensed his apprehension. His smirk widened and the boy deemed this battle won. With another huff, he changed the subject with a straight face. "Anyway, Orochimaru is after your sharingan. Makes me wonder why he doesn't just go find another one."

"Another one?" Itachi enquired.

Deidara blinked. "Oh, well, you killed all of them so I guess you _are _the only one left. Never mind."

"The only one..." The raven repeated breathlessly, eyes widening in realization.

The boy sighed and waved a hand dismissively. "Just don't get killed and he'll give up on you sometime. Leader's gonna beat him up right? Orochimaru's gonna be gone anyway." He turned and headed off. "I'm gonna go find Sasori no danna again. See ya."

"You didn't find him?"

Deidara shook his head and kept walking. "No. He wasn't at the hill."

Itachi absently stared at the ground, voice becoming more monotonous than usual. "I see. Good luck finding him."

Sensing the change in tone, the boy halted and glanced at the other over his shoulder. The blond gave him an odd look. "...Okay then. What're you gonna do?"

"...I'll be busy."

* * *

**A/N: Dangit, bad chapter. Back from vacation(It was only a week long) and my head is throbbing from all those buses. I don't like the big city and Seattle was a bit too polluted and filled with homeless for my taste, but my family wanted to go and we did. I have motion sickness so pulling out good grammar is harder than it should be. Excuse the lack of good spelling or missing words. Once I get my motion sickness together, I'll fix it up. **

**Well, with some thought, I hope it's somewhat understandable where this is going. **

**Thanks for reading! Nice to meet ya! **


	34. For Another One

**For Another One**

__I'm not the only one.__ Itachi briskly walked across the darkened path, shrouded over by trees and shrubbery underneath the night sky. The village had already begun to light up with lamps and other household glows, illuminating the village like a giant gathering of fireflies. Itachi strayed from the light, entering shadowed forest and venturing off the path.

__I'm not the only one. __

The Uchiha pushed past the bushes, mouth set in a thin line. His mood was dutiful, each step taken expertly as he abandoned the innocence he once showed. Now was no time to be dawdling with Deidara and Kisame or the rest of the Akatsuki, they would come as second priority for now. At the moment, something more alarming had shaken him up, and he couldn't bare to leave it be. Right now, he needed to rid of this threat that Orochimaru posed.

Crickets were silenced by his path as his pace sped up, now with quick drawn out steps as he hurried to the site. The Akatsuki, the Akatsuki, they didn't matter right now. This was not something an organization like them would acknowledge and tolerate. Itachi moved on his own accord, and hopefully, Kisame would not leave him behind once the job had been done. Despite orders, this was far more pressing; personal.

He emerged to the foot of the gate and halted abruptly. Immediately, his sharingan swirled into sight, warily setting his sights on the man waiting at the gate.

Orochimaru make a lop-sided smirk, licking his lips with his bangs covering both eyes in the darkness. The snake man put a hand on his hip, no longer adorning the Akatsuki cloak. Instead, he wore plain grey garbs with a purple rope tied at his waist. He waited, a knowing smile on his face.

Itachi didn't hesitate, keeping a stoic expression. "I will give you my eyes."

* * *

A single lamplight hung in the tree indicated that the area was occupied. Deidara felt a wave of comfort at the sight of his danna standing underneath the tree, seemingly organizing things though not quite putting items away to leave. The puppeteer noticed his subordinate's approach, turning to him before beckoning.

Gleefully, the boy rushed over and earned a ruffle to his hair. Deidara giggled and looked eagerly up at Sasori, who smiled briefly and turned back to his work. The blond held a hand up to his hair to fix it, glancing up at the bugs orbiting the lamp hung in the tree. Gazing forward again, he noticed a collection of small puppet parts and limbs gathered at the puppeteer's feet.

Leaning forward intrusively, Deidara observed these parts, recognizing them to be the same size and proportion to each other, probably all segments of the same project. By now, he'd seen plenty of the redhead's work, so these ones struck him as odd. These parts were much smaller and the wood seemed less maintained than all the others. It was rigid and rough, though the texture and color of the wood indicated it wasn't anything newly carved, so it wasn't a project Sasori had just started up. No blue-prints were in sight either, and the head piece was missing from the jumbled parts on the floor.

Sasori picked up a few of the pieces, noticing the younger when his sleeve was tugged. Putting the pieces down, he turned his attentions to the boy. Regardless of the look, Deidara sensed an absence in the puppeteer's mood, something was off.

Ignoring it, Deidara crouched down next to the pieces. "What are these?"

An eery silence came from the redhead, all kindness left his face for a split second, though the change didn't escape the blond. Sasori answered truthfully. "It was an old project I had in mind years ago. I trashed the idea soon after."

Deidara dropped onto the grassy floor, warily making sure he didn't disturb any of the objects settled onto the scroll. "So what was it? Why'd you decide not to do it?"

Glassy eyes reflected off of the lamp light and became lidded, averting from the boy in an almost shameful manner. Sasori joined the boy down on the grass, grabbing the forearm and bringing it up to view. "It was going to be a very important puppet, a very special one." He rested onto the scroll. "As for why I trashed it, well, I changed my mind."

Deidara cocked his head. "Why did you change your mind?"

"I have my reasons."

Whenever that phrase was uttered, the subordinate immediately knew that was the end of their questioning period. It was the puppeteer's way of drawing the line, and after a year of hearing it, the boy had begun to understand when questions were no longer welcomed.

Deidara leaned back and sat there for a minute, observing his danna slowly shove aside the parts to make way for another puppet summoned into another cloud. Being young, the blond had a low capacity for enjoying the silence and the gentle glow of the lamp underneath the night sky. He began to play with his clothes and eventually fished out some clay to tamper with, knowing full-well that Sasori didn't want any explosions at this hour.

"Did you have fun with Itachi and Kisame?"

Deidara blinked, the silence broken. "Yeah, it was kinda fun." He pouted. "Itachi made me play soccer with the local kids. Said it was supposed to be fun or something. I don't even know how to play soccer."

"You didn't like it?"

"No!" He tilted his chin up defiantly. "Itachi beat me. We watched a street performer and their weird puppet show and I bought Itachi some rice-balls. We also-" The bomber paused mid-sentence and suddenly fished his pockets.

Sasori raised a brow, glancing over finally at the subordinate. The seven-year old pulled a clenched hand and opened it, revealing some silvery coins. Deidara regarded them for a moment. "I forgot to hand back his change."

He threw his arms in the air and dropped onto the ground with a loud yawn. Deidara sighed, chest rising and falling as he pocketed the change and closed his eyes. "Oh well."

"Return it."

Deidara shot up. "Eh?"

The puppeteer frowned and stood up, towering over the other. The blond's eyes followed his danna, noting the sharp tone. It wasn't like they were villagers, so why did he have to? The boy was a rogue now, what was a little forgotten change to him? Surely, Itachi wouldn't miss such little money.

"Get up and return it."

"But danna!" Deidara whined.

"Do it." Sasori raised his voice, urging the boy to stand up as well.

He received a weak glare before the child let up and grumbled to his feet. He moved to skid down the hill, his master following closely behind. Once at the bottom, the blond gave his master an inquisitive look.

Sasori explained himself. "I'm coming too."

The blond squinted at him strangely but shrugged it off, making his way back to the lake where Kisame was staying and presumably his partner as well. It was Deidara's best guess anyway.

Both strolled back onto the path, a familiar mass of glowing lights in the distance indicated how close they were to the village. Right now, the unpaved road was darkened by the trees ahead. The temple remained unlit, causing it to blend into the black silken sky and become nearly impossible to see. The occasional cricket created a sense of safety. If they were out and making a racket, there was nothing to stop it from doing so.

Deidara glanced upwards in curiosity as they moved by a paper lantern hanging on a branch above, it's soft firefly glow illuminating the small segment of road. The blond glanced back at his danna, smiling lightly at the small falter that Sasori gave when they met gazes before continuing on. A small bounce was added to his step, more comforted and content walking with Sasori than on his own or with anyone else. Sasori insisted on coming along, and despite his pouts, Deidara secretly felt gleeful at the idea. On such a peaceful night like this, they finally got to walk together. Not with Hiruko in the way, not with gruelling mission on mind, not with anyone else. Just Deidara and Sasori.

Brown eyes glinted with confusion, puzzled on what was with the sudden mood change of the boy. One minute, Deidara was sulking about having to drag himself over to Itachi and the next, he seemed genuinely happy with a tiny sweet smile on his face. If Sasori hadn't known better, it would have almost been creepy and worthy of suspicion.

They came to an alternate entrance of the village, more familiar to them both as the place they first arrived. Sasori sauntered on, eyes briefly widening as he felt his arm drag back and catch onto something. Spinning his head quickly, the puppeteer calmed at the sight of the boy simply grasping at his hand, hoping to hold hands with the elder ninja in the crowd. Sasori kept walking at a pace that Deidara could follow.

"You're too old to be holding my hand." Sasori muttered and tried to yank his arm away in failure.

In protest, the child clenched his grip tighter, edging closer to his master. This wasn't anything new. Ever since the incident with their return to Iwagakure, Deidara had begun to cling to Sasori's side and even hold his hand like he was parent of some sorts. The puppeteer chose not to question it, deciding it was simply instinctive and due to the boy's lack of guardians, would have wanted to do it. Though, Sasori himself stopped clinging to his grandmother's hand when he turned six. Being eight was a little old, but the redhead tolerated it for the following years. Now though, Deidara was eleven-years old and nearing young adolescence.

Sasori silently groaned at the boy's resilience. He'd have to coax it out of him at some point. Despite the busy street, Sasori felt no twinge of embarrassment. After three years of this, he'd gotten used to it, and the occasional glance or stare was passed off easily. Pausing his step, the puppeteer earned a curious look from the boy.

"I'll let you off here. I'm going back."

Deidara's content face fell, eyebrows raised in an abandoned look as the boy refused to let go. The two stood for a moment, before the redhead let up and leaned down to eye-level. He spoke in a softer tone. "You'll be fine. Once you find Itachi, return his money and come back to go to sleep. Okay?"

The boy whimpered but finally let go of Sasori's hand. Standing right on up, the puppeteer patted the kid on the head before turning and heading back. A trained ninja holding an adult's hand? Pathetic. Unfortunately though, the puppeteer often found himself unable to scold the child for such a small gesture. During training, he had no qualms with yelling out orders here and there as well as scolding and lecturing him, but with these kinds of things, he often called upon his memories to guide his actions. Imitating a certain someone without him really understanding why he did it.

_"Okay Sasori, good luck on your first day of the Academy."_

_ She had straight brown hair, slightly wavy at the ends. Her face was gentle and caring, a soft smile gracing her lips. Sasori blinked his large eyes and watched in alarm as his mother stood up from her knelt position and headed for the entrance of the schoolyard. Hastily, he darted over to her and grabbed her green robes, tugging fiercely until she stopped. _

_ His mother glanced over her shoulder, locking gazes with her son. Eventually, the boy let go of her robes while she turned back to him. "What's wrong, Sasori?"_

_ The tiny redhead pressed his lips together in a frown, averting his eyes to the floor nervously. "Where are you going? Stay with me."_

_ She shook her head. "I'm sorry Sasori but I have to go home. I'm picking you up once class is over."_

_ "No, no, stay!" The redhead bounced and tugged her robe back fearfully."I don't want you to go! I don't wanna be alone!"_

_ With a sigh, she knelt down and patted the bright red mess of hair. It reminded her of his father, the same kind of softness as well. Mustering up a kind smile, she ruffled it a little. "You're not going to be alone. There are other kids like you at the academy. Make some friends."_

_ "But I don't want friends..." Sasori murmured. His breath began to become more audible, sniffles coming through. _

_ "Why not? Friends are good to have. You play with them and you can have fun!" She raised her voice into a sickly sweet tone, though comforting to the little boy. "Your teacher will be there too to help you."_

_ "But still..." The boy's eyes glimmered with moisture, face reddened with tears. His mother cooed and embraced him in a goodbye hug, holding him tightly. She patted his back and comforted him for a while, letting him cry on her shoulder. Robes wet or not, she had let her little Sasori sob._

In the end, Sasori never made any friends at the academy. He ended up as the loner child often, only strongly bonded with both of his parents in the end. The other kids never really did connect with him very well, and the looming shadow of his grandmother's legacy often left him as an artifact to be observed, a museum exhibit.

The streets bustled away from the darkness of the surrounding forest. Sasori continued on away from the glowing village, venturing into the path again.

_Thud_

Sasori paused as a small object rolled away from his shoe. Squinting slightly, the puppeteer picked up the object, finding it to be a wooden segment. The workmanship was aged and the wood was the same. Sasori frowned and began to wander the area. Another smaller finger piece was placed at the base of one the bush's while more were hidden in the nearby grass.

Once all the parts had been gathered, the puppeteer had not a shred of doubt, these were his works. Perhaps the workmanship wasn't as fine as it was now but he'd never seen another artist carve in such a manner.

Done with the day, he simply cradled the pieces in his arms and headed back to the hill. For now, the redhead felt the need to place these somewhere, dig through his collection of blueprint records and find the one that these parts matched up with. Looking at them, he made them a while ago, so chances were they would marked near the bottom.

Appearing into the large field, Sasori approached the glowing light of the lantern right at the hill. An absence hit him immediately, the lack of crickets chirping made his chakra strings go taught. With a wary silence, the puppeteer continued on towards the hill, keeping his composure as calm as he could muster as he slowly let the gentle light flood closer.

Finally at the peak of the hill, the puppeteer frowned at the presence looming behind him. Papers fluttered into a funnel and formed a womanly figure a bit taller than Sasori. Konan held a pensive air to her, eyeing down the redhead.

"Pein and I would like to talk to you."

Sasori nodded and placed the cradled pieces on the work floor. Once he was up, he turned to Konan. "What about?"

She stepped back a few paces, wings forming behind her back. "Come."

* * *

"Kisame no danna!"

He stirred out of the darkness, fumbling around with his hand for a bit before grasping the hilt of Samehada and dragging it towards him. The shark brought himself into a sitting position and jabbed the end of the mighty sword into the floor to let it stand. Odd eyes gazed over the moonless lake, eventually settling on a small blond strolling down by the shore.

Kisame tilted his head and pulled out a pocket-watch, noting how it was nearing sleep-hours. The Akatsuki had gone to bed a couple of hours before, so it irritated him slightly to be awoken by Sasori's underling. Regardless, he felt it would lead nowhere demonstrating his irritation, so for now he'd be lenient.

"Have you seen Itachi?"

A hand reached up to his head, scratching it while the former mist-ninja yawned. "No."

Deidara made a look of concern, pressing his lips together in a thin line at the reply. Venturing closer, he folded his arms. "Where'd you last see him?"

He received an inquisitive look from Kisame, who thought for a moment and let go of his sword, propping the arm over his knee. "We split after we met with leader. In short, I don't know where he is or where he could be. What's with the fuss?"

The boy blinked. "Didn't he come back an hour ago?"

"If he did, I'd be sleeping so I don't know." The shark pressed his back against the tree. "So what? Is Itachi missing?"

Deidara nodded. "Danna told me to return something. I couldn't find Itachi in the village either. Maybe he's at the temple?"

Kisame chuckled at the statement. "Nah, the temple's a wreck now." The swordsman heaved and grabbed Samehada's hilt to pull himself into a stand. Yanking the blade out the ground, he continued to explain. "Doubt anyone would want to go there."

"Oh yeah. It's burnt down."

"Well thanks to you, I'm completely awake. Need some help finding him?" Samehada buckled onto his sash, left to hang over the swordsman's back.

* * *

"What is this?" Sasori pulled his lips back into a scowl. "This has nothing to do with me."

Pein stood over the underground lake, unfazed by the droplets of water that continued to drip from the ceiling. A mystifying green glow emitted from the bed of water, illuminating the dark cave. Konan laced her fingers together, standing at the Akatsuki's leader's side. She made a steely glare towards the redhead, who took no note of the look.

Ringed eyes narrowed at the puppeteer. "On the contrary, those parts were definitely yours. They had your symbol imprinted onto them. Are you implying that they're fakes?"

"No, I'm not saying that." Sasori hissed.

"Then they are your puppets. Am I correct?"

"That's not what-" Sasori lost his composure and snapped, unable to take the pressure of being accused. His sentence was quickly cut off by Konan.

"We can't take what Sasori is saying too seriously." The woman locked eyes with their leader. "After all, he's been absent for the duration of these events."

Pein held his chin in thought. "Yes, that is a concern."

"Oi! Listen to me-"

"_You're acting like a child_." Konan reprimanded loudly. "We cannot have the boy in such incapable hands. Pein."

The puppeteer stepped back, furrowing his eyebrows. "What are you..."

The two Akatsuki seemed to communicate telepathically. The angel made a solemn look, concern could be found if one looked even deeper. Leader contemplated for a moment, then nodded. He closed his eye for a moment, then hardened his gaze. "Until this is sorted out, Deidara will be moved to another member."

"You can't be serious." Sasori growled.

"I am." Pein challenged confidently.

The puppeteer was taken aback by the reply. Of all the things that they could have threatened him, why did it have to be that? Separate him from Deidara? After all they had been through? His fingers twitched in annoyance. His mouth formed a thin line, threatening to deepen as his expression darkened. "_You take that back_."

Pein remained silent, watching the puppeteer bow his head and hide his face. Apprehensively, his companion prepared for the redhead's next move, a stack of paper tracing itself out from her cheek and falling into the surrounding air.

"_Take it back _**_now_.**" Sasori raised his head slightly, a dangerous glint in his eyes. "_You are not about to take Deidara away from me. If you do..._"

"Konan."

The angel was already breaking away into a flurry of paper sheets that began to fill into the back of the cave, creating a giant wave of white. Half of her expression remained, keeping watch of the puppeteer's movement. In response to her preparations, a scroll slid down from his sleeve into his hand. Sasori's eyes widened until his pupils were completely visible, reflecting the green glow of the water. He let his head fall back and lop-sided, as if oblivious to the threatening display that Konan created.

A wave of paper sheets nearly crashed into the cave wall but quickly directed themselves away. It scaled up the ceiling and fell back on itself, heading towards Sasori in a gigantic tsunami of white sheets.

The scroll was raised to view, paper flap falling open to reveal the number three written on the page. "_I'll **kill** you this time_."

* * *

**A/N: Again, this is a long one. The next couple of days are gonna be filled with updates. I have some chapters nearing the end of their progress for other fanfictions. I still can't believe how long Little Artist has been in the progress and planning stages(though the rewrites have taken up a lot of that time). **

**Thanks for reviewing so much! I feel really pumped to get these chapters out! Though I apologize that things are going a little slow, I've started taking part in a daycare and I caught a cold from one of the kids. In particular, I'd like to welcome(back) 534667lc, , chaann, princessbinas, RoCelia, Mew Hana, and jojo507 in the review section. I'd like to welcome the newer followers but their usernames usually get lost in the list. Regardless! I'm happy to see that this fanfiction has gone so far!**

**I'd also like to ask a question here. I've encountered an error where the traffic stats are not showing up on any of my fanfictions. It's kinda frustrating and I've already sent an error email to the site but so far, nothing's returned to normal. Has happened to any of you? It just shows up as "N/A".**

**Thanks for reading! Nice to meet you all!**


	35. The Second Sharingan

**The Second Sharingan**

"This it?" Deidara asked.

The young child took another measured step towards the gates imbedded into the hillside. He scanned the minor details, eyeing the snake-like pattern and the faint rushing water design carved into the wooden exterior. Aged cracks and moss patches patterned he bottom of the door, indicating its old age.

_So this was the gate Itachi saw_. Deidara had not a doubt in his mind. This was indeed something belonging to Orochimaru. The way the snake worked his craft, it was surprising to the boy that he and his master weren't on good terms. The two seemed to like the same things, though their styles varied enough that the blond knew what belonged to who, a crucial skill to attain when Sasori and his partner lived in such close proximity of each other.

Sasori also had his own brand of hideout, though they tended to be dusty and worn from years of disuse. From what he knew, the puppeteer owned quite a few around the Land of Wind from his time before the Akatsuki. Over the years since they had met, Deidara had been lucky enough to see some of them, since they often contained things that his danna left behind and may have needed right then and there. This hideout thing only served as one more similarity.

Kisame gave a wary glance around the gate, looking out for potential guards that might have been stationed here. No response came from Samehada, giving them the clear. "This is the place alright. Not only that, but my sword senses Itachi's chakra around here. It's a fresh scent, so it was pretty easy to find."

"So that thing's like a dog?" The boy muttered to himself as he gazed over at the blade. His eyes returned to the gate, making a long sigh. "And what's Itachi doing in there anyway?"

"Beats me."

The shark stood for a moment, then sauntered over to the gate. He was a good foot taller than the frame, meaning he'd probably have to duck down to enter. Grasping his sword, the Akatsuki yanked it from his sash and swung it down fiercely against the door, adrumptly landing an inch away from the surface of the wood and bouncing slightly. The impact created ripples that dispersed across the gate.

Deidara and Kisame remained still before the boy commented. "A barrier."

The ripples travelled to the edges of the barrier, quickly bouncing off of the frame of the door and heading back to the centre. Deidara blinked._ That's weird..._

_ DOOM_

Kisame's sword flew over the boy's shoulder, successfully barrelling through a few metres into the forest behind. Deidara froze on the spot, eyes as wide as dinner plates as his hair whipped about in the forceful blast of wind that followed. A pregnant silence fell upon the scene, the child chancing a look over his shoulder at the now naked Samehada, bandages torn off its body in the rubble.

A grin grew on Kisame's face. "I see. So it's_ that _kind of seal." His hand extended out, held in a ready position as a sort of beckon to his sword. In response, the blade gurgled then flipped out of the wreckage to hop and waddle towards its master and firmly planted itself in his grasp.

"Huh? You're being too vague." Deidara patted his clothes of the wood debris, marvelling at the behaviour of the shark skin blade.

"It's not hard to understand." Kisame pulled Samehada off of the ground, some stray bits of dirt flaking off of its scales. "Sasori and Orochimaru may not like each other that much, but they do exchange ideas from time to time. You've seen it before, utilizing an opponents chakra against them or manipulating it for his own use. The jutsu needed for him to check on the status of his sleeper agents is much the same. He summons a small bit of the chakra he's collected from that person and ignites it as a flame on a candle. However it could also be put to work as a sort of energy or power to deal with an opponent. In a sense, those little candles he keeps are also weapons in a way."

_So it was that jutsu I saw him use way back then?_ Deidara thought.

* * *

_The moment the child had returned, Sasori seemed to occupied, pulling a scroll out and laying it on the floor. The redhead hadn't informed him of what he was doing, but if anything, Deidara could easily tell this was no circus trick. _

_ A circle of cryptic kanji and other characters surrounded the white candle, unlit with a black and burnt stub. Deidara didn't bother asking, his question would be answered with time. _

_ Holding a hand out, Sasori made the half-ram seal. The child narrowed his eyes, hand still rested on his head as he sat opposite of the other. A ninja huh? Great..._

_ ..._

_ "Damn, what a waste..," Sasori cursed, "That was my only one."_

_ "What is it? What happened?" The blond blinked. No events ensued, not a single thing caught his eye. If it were a jutsu, something would have happened already, but in this case. From what it looked like, either something was wrong or the redhead had made a mistake. _

_ Putting away the candle, the scroll was rolled up and slid into his sleeve. Sasori made a pessimistic expression, "None of your concern. It just didn't work is all."_

_ "That was a jutsu right? What was supposed to happen?"_

_ "If it worked, the candle would be lit. However this time, it didn't light up. Something went wrong, and you don't need to know what that is."_

* * *

"This seal barrier works by collecting the chakra from its assailant's attack and converts it into its own power, using it to retaliate and hopefully drive off the intruder. Though, I'll admit, Sasori's use of the technique is far more passive than Orochimaru's."

Kisame rested his sword on his shoulder. "Like this, a brute-force kinda guy like me is at a disadvantage."

The blond looked at the other, then turned his gaze towards the gate. Even then, it was still a barrier and a barrier always had a seal tag somewhere nearby, like a lock. Deidara unzipped his pouch and fished his hand inside to pull out a wad of paper tags, earning an inquisitive glance from the shark. Lifting the rubber band, the eleven-year old slipped out the tag and looked around. "So...you see a tag anywhere?"

"None in sight. What're those for?" Kisame enquired.

Deidara held the tags up to view. "Danna gave me

* * *

a set of tags to undo seals. It should work on this one too."

_"But danna..." The blond hesitantly accepted the tags, looking up at his mentor. "They're yours."_

_ Sasori pushed back the chair and sat down on his work bench. It had been a successful year since Orochimaru was removed from their lives, and the young subordinate had reached his ninth birthday. Brown eyes stared softly at his underling. "It's your present."_

_ Deidara frowned and made a flat expression."This is a lame present..." _

_ The puppeteer broke into a small smile. "Those aren't ordinary tags. They're the ones I used to break the seal on that door to retrieve your kinjutsu. It's a set of numbered tags from one to ten. If the seal is an even number, place an odd one and vice versa. It'll burn it away and whatever jutsu it activates. You understand?"_

_ As expected, the boy responded with a puzzled face. It didn't surprise the redhead, since he was only nine after all, he was probably more experienced with actual jutsu than this Sealing Corps stuff. The brat would learn eventually though, with the circumstances they lived along, such a tool would have been a great present. Deidara just hasn't learned how to appreciate it is all. "You'll get it. Just don't waste them."_

* * *

"I've never used them before."

Kisame pondered the idea. It probably wasn't a good idea to keep ramming into the door like that, especially if it posed a threat to both of them the more they tried. If anything, the situation called for non-violent means of getting through.

Funny. This seemed exactly like the kind of thing he'd expect of the puppeteer. With all those knick-knacks and tools at his disposal, it shouldn't have been surprising that some of those things would have been passed down to the little student. Sasori was always the innovator in the Akatsuki, a crafted genius and observant enough to leave a huge mark in their organization. Those puppets were created for specific purposes, each one having survived concept after concept, then researched carefully and tested until each one had a lethal arsenal unique from the rest of his collection. Constantly developed, updated, and recreated when broken, Sasori was a master in that field and his collaborations with Orochimaru always created some surprising results that ultimately lead to the Akatsuki's greatest achievements. Blades, poisons, tools, springs, locks, seals, prosthetic, gears, keys, it was all up his alley.

Perhaps Deidara would turn out the same. "I guess it's worth the gamble. Let's just try and see where it takes us."

* * *

He was lead into a dark corridor, torches hung on the walls and illuminated the hall. Itachi followed the slinking figure deeper into the maze, a wave pattern decorated the layout of the structure. On their way, they passed many doors, some creaked open to reveal empty rooms with a single bed and night stand while some were dark and lead into larger rooms with questionable objects.

Orochimaru's figure swayed in the darkness, back faced towards him while two large dog-sized snakes slithered and hissed in a hostile manner behind him. The Uchiha was careful to keep his pace constant, hiding fear but keeping up the signal that he was definitely on guard.

"Did you have fun in the Akatsuki?"

Itachi didn't waver but took a moment to reply, silently pondering the question in his head. "I only just arrived. It was a unique experience."

A throaty laugh came from the snake. "Yes. They're a very interesting organization aren't they? Each member is different, if I could, I would have done dissections of them years ago."

The giggles continued, half-way maniacal as they echoed into the space. Orochimaru exhaled to put an end to his cackling, a smirk laid on his lips. "That ragdoll jutsu of Kakuzu's is definitely worth looking into, more hearts and love to go around. Perhaps if I removed the surrounding tissue and flesh of Kisame's chakra system would I be able to preserve it and put it to use. He has quite a huge capacity, though I'm not sure of the body I have at the moment would be able to withstand it." He tapped a finger to his chin, rolling his eyes in the boy's direction. "What do you think?"

"They won't let you do that." Itachi replied simply, earning an amused sneer from the pale man.

"Well that's obvious. It'll be pretty easy once I have the sharingan however." He turned a corner, the twin snakes making sure that the thirteen-year old followed in suite.

A horrid scream rang out from one the rooms, door tightly shut with several locks and chains decorating the frame and wall around it. Muffled voices rushed to contain the louder one, resulting in an ear-shattering bang that shook the floor. Itachi held his breath, keeping his gaze strictly focused on the back of the sannin's head. The chains rattled as the door was pounded and abused, some dents making it through before a less massive bang supposedly hit the wall on the other side of the room. Panicked screaming was silenced by a squelching sound accompanied by faint crackling and choked breathing, as if an egg had been crushed. At last, the noise died down, a dead silence radiating.

A trickling sound remained of the event, something wet falling into the cracks on the door hinges before it it began to spray and splatter. Crimson liquid pooled on the floor, a few drops hung on the top of the door. A foul scent wafted into the room, giving the air a thickness to it. Itachi slowly exhaled and breathed again, eyes threatening to tear up at the horrid stench. It wasn't the smell at all, but simply the images that triggered in his head. Morbid corpses laid on top of each other, a familiar cement wall sprayed with blood underneath a bright full moon. A baby wailed in his ears, its voice becoming more and more desperate and agonized as its throat began to rip in the face of such pressure. Its calls went unheard, alone in the face of the massacre. His mother's face was twisted in terror, frozen as if the moment when the blade pierced her chest had been encased in ice.

The familiar feeling of dread and confusion stung at his heart, causing a sinking feeling to drop to his stomach. Itachi's face stiffened, blood retreating from his face as his eyes began to cloud over. The wails never left his ears, nor did the abandoned, terrified faces of his victims.

Squirming, tearing their fingers against the walls and corners in last ditch attempt to scramble away from his blade, a last cry for help before their voices droned out in their last breaths.

"Lord Orochimaru."

The sannin paused, a figure emerging from the end of the corridor. Two reflective circles gleamed in the shadow of the next hall, finally appearing as a pair of glasses. A young male, around Itachi's age stood by the corner of the hall.

_That's!_ Itachi's eyes widened, staring directly at the second performer. The last he'd seen him, the young adolescent was entertaining children in the village, but the the Uchiha hadn't thought much of him. The puppet was far more attention grabbing than the actual human performer. For a long time, Itachi had almost forgotten about him, and apparently, Deidara has well since neither mentioned his presence.

The silver-haired boy opened his mouth to continue but the Akatsuki caught his gaze. With a sly smirk, he fixed his glasses again and turned back to Orochimaru. "There's been a disturbance at the entrance. I've identified them as Sasori's underling and Kisame Hoshigaki. I think they may be after Itachi here."

_Deidara? Kisame?_ Itachi blinked. Those two came for him? Surely not, on orders of the Akatsuki probably. Though why would a low-ranking subordinate like that eleven-year old be there if that were the case? He tried to conjure up some sort of explanation but his mind ran a hasty blank. No matter, he was here, and the arrival of those two only meant that the time the raven had was limited.

"Do what you like. As long as nothing disturbs me, I'll allow you do whatever you please with them, Kabuto."

Kabuto made a curt bow before heading back in the direction he came, flashing a snide look at Itachi. Orochimaru continued to walk and the snakes hissed and brandished their sharp fangs at the boy to continue on forward.

"I get it now." Itachi muttered. "You sent him to take me."

"Hmm..." The snake hummed. "Yes, that was the original intent, but Sasori's little brat got in the way. I had Kabuto pursue you two and try to steal you without the Akatsuki knowing. It would be better if I could leave that wretched organization without the fuss, hm?"

The Uchiha pressed his lips together, weighing his next question. "And Sasori?"

"Hm?"

"Is he here? Was Sasori in on it?" Itachi pushed the question a little too far, earning an amused expression from his captor.

The pale man shook his head. "Not exactly. You see, I thought it would be a waste to leave the Akatsuki with the sharingan only, so I decided to plan some fun for my partner as well." His expression grew shrewd. "You see, I hate that man, and the Akatsuki. All I wanted was to go about my days as I pleased but the organization's sudden appearance put a foil in my plans. Sasori has been a watchdog for them since, and never granted me a shred of privacy unless I bribed him for it. Even as my patience waned, I was finally rewarded for my efforts upon your arrival. Your sharingan would be a nice addition to my jutsu, but Sasori got in the way when I was about to have you."

Orochimaru twisted the knob and lead the thirteen-year old into fairly sized room. At the very back was a snake statue, mouth passively held open while its eyes were lit with candles. There was very little else in the space, but a stool in the corner and some cabinets oddly placed above the snake shrine.

"Luckily, Kabuto was able to purchase one of Sasori's old works, probably from his younger days in Sunagakure. I didn't want to leave without letting him know how I felt, so framing Sasori simply for the fun of it seemed in order. He never let me in on the secret to his body, how he converted himself from human to puppet. He guarded his work carefully and threatened to tattle like the little brat he is to the Leader of the organization whenever I was caught doing something he didn't like."

Orochimaru drew a sharp breath but his lips furled into a grin that reached from ear to ear. "Before, I thought that he was too guarded, to cooped up in that shell named Hiruko to falter. However, I was able to wriggle out of his grasp one day and when we met again, he had this little boy trailing in his steps. I never saw Sasori as the type to have a soft spot for children, but no matter. It was a weakness, an obvious one that stuck out like a sore thumb."

Itachi frowned in disapproval but continued to observe the sannin turn to him, a crooked grin on his face. "I've waited for this..."

"Hm." The Uchiha lowered his gaze and slowly brought a hand up to his face. Fingertips inched around the exterior of his left eye socket but paused briefly. His eyes shut but opened, staring dully at the floor. "Orochimaru."

The snake made a grunt in reply, taking a few cocky steps towards the thirteen-year old. The smirk had lessened to a simple eager smile. Itachi slowly removed his hand, staring at his fingers. "What will happen to me when you have my eyes?"

He felt the sensation of something nudge against his leg, slowly wrapping over his foot and coiling upwards with a strong grip. The boy watched the snakes slither up his body, tongues flickering in and out as they entwined around his lower torso. Orochimaru made another throaty laugh. "Little Itachi, if I wanted your eyes I would have took them from you at the entrance. All of you is here right now so I wonder what I want from you."

Itachi's lips parted and let out a low tone. "More than my eyes."

"Yes." A wicked tongue crept out of the pale-man's mouth and extended further to an unnatural length. The corners of his lips rose and his eyes widened. "I desire more than your eyes, I want every powerful jutsu, all the tailed beasts, money, freedom, the world, anything I can get my hands on! Though, it's all for nothing if I die of old age before I attain those things. Therefore, I'm searching for immortality! Youth! Eternity!"

"You're only thirteen, so young to be in such a dangerous group as the Akatsuki. Perhaps your body needs a far more experienced driver." The sannin's tongue withdrew into his mouth. "I just hope your skin isn't too tight."

* * *

"Ah, there we go." Deidara chirped, watching the purple hue of the barrier thicken then disperse. Once it had gone, the older moved to open the entrance but was beat to it as the entrance dropped open, the doors swung and creaked on their hinges. Inside revealed a dark flight of stairs leading further into the hill into a pitch blackness. A slight rush of air rushed out and into the hall, giving Kisame a good vibe about this place. The shark widened his grin and sauntered to the entrance but stopped briefly to look over at the child.

"I-it's okay. I'll stay here."

The statement came as a frightened whisper. Deidara sat on the ground, knees pulled up to his chest nervously as the eleven-year old trembled at the foot of the door. The Akatsuki raised a brow then turned to judge the eery darkness of the path ahead. "It's not that scary. Just dark."

Deidara shook his head furiously, half snapping, half stammering. "No! I-It's not that! It's just..." His face paled comically. "I-it just opened b-by its...itself."

For a moment, the swordsman was at a loss for words. This kid was scared of ghosts? With unblinking marionettes at every corner and a typically dark state of Sasori's workshop save for the occasional lamp or candle flame, you'd think that anyone who had lived there for long would have become used to it. Not only that, but the eleven-year old seemed like a confident little chap, immune to gore.

In attempt to lighten the mood, Kisame took a few steps inside. Deidara watched his silhouette begin to darken and disappear briefly before lights began to flare up and travel down the staircase. Kisame came into plain sight as the torches lit up the space, dispelling the eery darkness.

"See? Not so bad." The shark beckoned towards the younger.

Fear left the little boy's eyes, quickly gazing around and weighing the likely dangerous hideout compared to braving the black forest alone. It didn't take long to make a decision, as soon enough, Kisame found the little guy standing by his side. Both nodded towards each other, continuing down to the bottom of the steps.

A foot blocked their path, a silver-haired boy fixed his glasses and stood in their way. "Why won't you just go away? No matter how many times I tell you."

Deidara blinked for a few moments, face screwing up in thought as he scanned the newcomer head to toe. _He seems familiar..._

Kabuto smirked in amusement, about to simply give the answer to the boy but was quickly interrupted as an earth-shattering tremble shook the floor. Deidara easily found his ground in the moment, able to stand the sudden impact. He stared at the ground. This wasn't just a shock-wave of an explosion. Something hit the ground below them, as if a battering ram was thrown against the hideout.

Sasori growled, watching the puppet rested against the ceiling of the cavern and fall away as the papers peeled off of its joints. The puppet joined the many loose rocks that descended into the glowing pool below, tiny splashes would soon by followed by a larger one. Blue threads whipped out and caught the puppet before it hit he water, sliding towards the puppeteer and finally re-directing itself towards the opponent. Sasori frowned. He expected more from this one, considering the effort it took to obtain it.

"So, that's the Kazekage puppet." Konan rose in the air, cloak dispersing into a flurry of papers that encircled the cavern. The flock flew into position, surrounding the puppeteer, leaving no room for escape.

An arm extended out, sending the paper shuriken in a strike for the redhead. A wave of static black engulfed Sasori before they could reach, deflecting the projectiles elsewhere. A second passed before a bit of the cocoon twisted away, revealing the unharmed Akatsuki as the beat-up Kazekage by his side. Sasori wore a displeased look. "This sand isn't normal, it's iron, easily stronger than those flimsy papers of yours. Now take it back. Say Deidara won't be taken away from me."

Konan noticed as the papers surrounding the barrier began to blacken, iron sand gripping at the sheets and slowly eating away at them. She changed the subject. "Why did you attack Itachi?"

Sasori snorted. "I _didn't_ attack Itachi."

"You're the only puppeteer we know of in this area." Pein narrowed his gaze. "Even if there were others, you're the only one who would have the guts to challenge an Akatsuki. Not to mention the logo imprinted was yours. Even you don't deny that."

"I have no idea why my puppets were used in the attack but I wasn't in possession of them and haven't been for a long time." Sasori protested angrily.

"So you say." The Akatsuki leader said doubtfully.

Sasori clenched his teeth and barked. "_You two are absolutely hopeless!_"

* * *

"Orochimaru, I want to ask something."

The pale-man took the requests into consideration, but simply decided nothing else. "Yes?"

"If there were another Sharingan user, would you try to take their eyes too?"

Orochimaru cocked his head slightly at the question. What was this kid getting at? Another sharingan user? The Uchiha clan was all dead, no more to be found, what was Itachi thinking asking something so trivial in his position? He expected some other question, perhaps a last request or something more meaningful than posing such a situation. Regardless, the sannin answered. "If I found you too challenging, I would certainly consider it depending in on how strong they are. Though most likely, I would definitely try to take their eyes."

"Oh."

Suddenly, the room twisted and turned, Orochimaru woke from the genjutsu. Two snakes lay on the floor, their heads hacked off while the flickering candles of the shrine were blown out. Itachi stood at the door, eyes swirled into a threatening red hue. "Then I am afraid I will have to rid of you."

* * *

**A/N: Hello! I'm updating less at the moment now that school is starting so things are a little slow. I'm pushing the standard word count for my chapters to 4,000 to make up for the lack of updates and it will hopefully cut down on how many chapters this fanfiction will have as a whole. I feel like this one ended up as a bit of a waste though. I didn't get enough time and space tor reveal as much as I wanted to.**

**ALSO, I have a new fanfic up called Akatsuki Mission: Infinity. I work hard on how that one is written and I also consider it the fanfiction where the characters are the least OOC(Though they will be a little OOC due to the fact that it's friendship as well). It's sort of AU but it's not at the same time. Basically, a plot similar to the ones you would find in the Naruto movies, it's a short fanfiction spanning about 20 chapters at most. It's not complete yet but it will be. The plot is fast-paced so I hope it finishes quickly.**

**Thanks for reading! Nice to meet ya! How're ya doing? Please review!**


	36. Caved in Cavern

**Caved in Cavern**

_(Naruto Shippuden OST 1 Track 9 - Anger)_

_Sasuke._ Itachi blocked a high kick, arm trembling against the pale-man's strength. The sannin smiled as two snakes slithered out of his clothes and coiled swiftly towards the boy, fangs gleaming in the low light. The raven quickly backed out of reach just as their jaws came within an inch of his arm, retreating his arm inside his sleeve.

He skid across the floor, rising to move again but the attacks were relentless as more and more snakes slithered his way. Several walls caved in, dust and debris blasting into the small halls of the hideout as if something large had barrelled through. He felt his arms go numb, overwhelmed by the impact and his ribs begin to stress under the pressure.

The dust cleared, revealing a tattered and beaten Uchiha amongst the rubble. Itachi sat there for a moment in his bed of cement, breathing timid sighs as the pain in his chest restricted his lungs. He expected Orochimaru to be strong, but not anything he couldn't deal with on his own. In his own right, Itachi knew was very strong, and found himself to be competent among the Akatsuki ranks, or so he thought. Never had he imagined that he'd struggle so much, that he'd find such a threat. Itachi never felt like the kind of person to need help. He helped others on the team, not the other way around. When he battled alongside his new partner, his sudden rookie status was completely foreign grounds. Now he was the one stumbling around, unable to swim in a sea of sharks and whatever else swam those waters. However, he was here, and he needed to do this, even if he died trying.

An image of his younger brother flashed in his mind, his adorable smile created a warm feeling that blurred out the pain in his chest. A figure loomed over Itachi, slowly closing in as the Uchiha found the strength to move, hands twitching, then legs slowly pushing the rocks away.

"At last..." Orochimaru's voice rose. He lifted his arm as four snakes shot out of his sleeve, wrapping tightly around the boy and restricting him. Fangs dug deep into the raven's flesh, injecting a paralysis inducing venom. Itachi nearly yelped out but seemed to refrain from it, eyes going wide as he struggled. Eventually, the squirming stopped as the thirteen-year old was rendered still.

Orochimaru made a smirk of triumph and leaned back, the snakes hauling Itachi out of the rubble. Itachi struggled to twitch his arms and keep his lids open, the venom slowly circulating around his body. With one final squirm, the thirteen-year old went slack like a sack of rice. Orochimaru approached his prey, allowing the snakes to remove their fangs from his body. The venom wasn't fatal, but it would do well with more troublesome bodies.

He extended a hand to touch the young Uchiha, finger lightly brushing his cloak collar before the body dispersed into a flurry of screeching crows. The sannin snapped out of his excitement, watching the birds fill the room and Itachi disappear from sight.

Orochimaru turned on his heel fast enough to catch a blade aimed for his heart, Itachi moved before him, gleaming kunai in hand. Before the cold metal could pierce his chest, the snake dodged the attack and charged his hand with a sharp wind of chakra to strike at the boy's stomach. The chakra scalpel ripped at the younger's abdomen, slicing to the side where more crows spilled out of the wound, screeching loudly and noisily as that body also dispersed into nothing.

Another body appeared, torn to shreds while another lost an eye but dispersed into more screeching crows. Orochimaru fended off the clones in frustration. Even as he tried to break the genjutsu, it was too strong. The sannin beheaded another one, the crows dispersing again while the whole flock spun about the room. Out of the tornado of birds, four figures appeared, each one presenting the same Itachi Uchiha. Unable to react, Orochimaru felt the cold steel pierce his flesh, ice-cold spears searing against his stomach. He froze and hacked, muscles going tense at the pain. His legs began to give out, the pain increasing at a rate it never should. Itachi was making this pain, but it wasn't real. _Dammit...beaten by some child's genjutsu..._

_Pathetic!_

A snake wriggled out of his arm, slithering quickly to his wrist as it brandished its fangs. Its jaws clamped tightly onto Orochimaru's arm, adding to the pain. Soon enough, the clones began to fade, crumbling into crows that dispersed into black feathers.

A sudden awareness came over him, the sight of the younger aiming the kunai blade at his heart, hoping to end it all quickly. Orochimaru swiftly clamped his hand around the boy's neck and squeezed hard, causing the Uchiha to flinch and drop the kunai. Itachi's feet floated off the floor, neck held in a death grip that raised him into the air. Itachi felt his throat contract and suffocate, mind going blurry at the lack of air.

Suddenly, a white creature erupted from the floor, coiling tightly against the Sannin's ankle. Several snakes latched onto the white centipede, their bites doing nothing to stop it as it made its way up to his knee before resting.

"_Katsu!_"

_BOOM_

The next thing Itachi knew, his neck was released as a pained cry rang in his ears. He barely registered the explosion as something hard but slightly squishy broke his fall. The surface bounced and something else clamped around his body, a darkness flooding his sight even when he opened his eyes.

He pressed his hands to the case around him, the rubbery surface barely budging against his arm. The space around him bumped and jittered, as if whatever was holding him was moving around erratically.

Suddenly, a large wobble and thud was heard, Itachi bumped backwards and his shoulder collided onto his left. Two horizontal seams parted and light began to flood in as the case was opened. Itachi was thrown upside down and something at the back of it shoved him out, throwing the raven onto the floor outside roughly.

"What the hell were you thinking?"

The words barely registered in his mind, more concerned with the dent in his neck and an aching bum from the fall. Itachi coughed a few times and turned to face the young blond, now knelt on the floor before him. Deidara made a sour look and continued to rant. "Sasori no danna already warned us not to go near Orochimaru! If you were gonna disobey him, at least don't go alone! You need someone to help you!"

"No, I was-" Itachi replied slowly but was quickly cut off as a tremor shook the floor. Deidara stumbled slightly, giving the thirteen-year old a moment to take in his surroundings.

A large bird-like sculpture stood nearby, a clay tongue stuck out lazily against its bottom bill. Elsewhere in the room, Kisame was holding off Orochimaru, keeping him at a safe distance from the children.

Deidara stood up hastily, glaring at the floor. "We gotta go!"

In one swift motion, Itachi was scooped into the giant bird's mouth, trapped again in the confines of its bill. Two snakes struck where he had been, now uselessly biting at clay of the sculpture and bounded away. Deidara jumped on and quickly lifted off, flying the bird down the hall. The blond ignored the ticked thuds and muffled monotonous demands. Regardless of why Itachi was here, they needed to leave. Not only for Itachi, but simply due to the fact that Deidara had plans to live tomorrow, not get shred to pieces or swallowed up by some mutant snake.

The bird emerged from the entrance, narrowly escaping the giant explosions that wreaked the land. Mounds of dirt flew into the air, indicating the scale of the battle. Deidara rose his sculpture into the air, keeping a safe distance in the sky. Kisame was strong, he should be able to handle this. Even if Orochimaru couldn't be beaten, he trusted that the Akatsuki lived up to his title and survived with few injuries.

As the dust cleared, the maze revealed itself, now bare and naked of the earth that it hid it. The halls were caved in, some rooms completely destroyed and indistinguishable from the rubble. Kisame jumped away from the area but continued to taunt Orochimaru, not quite down with retreat.

Deidara watched in awe as more dirt and trees were jetted into the air, the once beautiful land now torn and beaten. It had only taken a few seconds, but the clashes between the tailless beast and the sannin had quickly transformed the scape. Deidara snapped out of his awe and scowled at the noisy Uchiha to snap, "Hey! Don't destroy my bird! I worked hard on it!"

The warning came on deaf ears, as Itachi continued to try and pry the thing open. Deidara blinked and tried again. "We're forty meters in the air! You want to fall?"

"Deidara, let me out."

The child had to strain his ears to hear the low request, muffled by the thick walls of the bird's bill. The blond scoffed and sat back, crossing his arms defiantly. "No."

A silver tip erupted from the nose of the bird, a clear kunai blade stabbed into the roof of the case. He blinked and panicked, leaning forward to yell again at the other. "Forty-meters Itachi!"

Silence came from the Uchiha, the kunai blade remaining still. Deidara watched as the battle advanced closer to the lake, eventually clashing right on top of it which cause the water to fountain around the two. A snake shot into the air, striking directly for the bird but missing narrowly as the boy rose the sculpture higher into sky.

"I have to do this."

"Do what?" Deidara kept a trained eye as he listened, making sure to keep their newest member just out of reach. In training, this would be unfair and ruled against, but in real battle, there was no limit to how high you could fly. "I'd be happy to see you die, but I'll get in trouble with danna and leader if I let it happen now!"

Itachi sat inside the dark space, a stream of low light leaked through the hole in the ceiling, kunai gripped in his hand. He stared at the spot where the light ended. "...For my little brother."

"Eh?"

"You probably don't understand." Both hands gripped the kunai, trembling slightly. His voice was a raised whisper, weighing his words crudely. It was probably a better choice not to spew out any of this, but he needed to let it out somehow. He had no expectations for the blond to pity him at all. "I have to kill Orochimaru for his sake."

Deidara sneered. "Isn't he dead?"

"He's not."

The bird's flight faltered for a moment, tumbling in the air for a few seconds before Deidara could properly steer out of the turbulent wind. "Wait, so you left your little brother alive?"

"Deidara. You have Sasori, I have him." Itachi attempted to sympathize. It was hard to speak like this, especially when he could only tell the other child's emotions and reaction from his voice. "Orochimaru is a threat to him. I want to get rid of that threat. His eyes..."

The bomber sat there for a moment, dumbfounded by what he just heard. Itachi was soft? An Akatsuki member was soft? Well, in a sense, that would apply to his master as well but the eleven-year old didn't like to think that way of him. In sense, he did understand. If it came to it, the boy would definitely come to his master's aid, and if his brother was something like Sasori was to him...

Deidara shook his head furiously. No, no, no! He couldn't do that! Risk Itachi die from this height and potentially, Orochimaru possessing the sharingan or stay within the safe zone where neither would get killed unless some other shinobi could also fly. Danna would certainly scold him if let the newest member die like this, a truly stupid move.

But then again, he was a stupid kid wasn't he? With a stupid soft mentor and a stupid Uchiha who couldn't leave things to fate.

Itachi didn't hear a reply. The boy must have decided against it, silence being gold in this kind of situation. Fitting of an Akatsuki, perhaps it was better off if he didn't come here. Regardless, even if Kisame was fighting the snake, he couldn't be sure if he was enough to handle him. If Sasori were strong enough, he wouldn't have made the warning in the first place, confident that he'd deal with whatever comes to the table. However, the warning was a little more than that, and the tenseness that radiated off the puppeteer, Itachi couldn't be sure that the two weren't simply evenly matched. Two people of the same strength either fought often or completely avoided each other. Nothing came in between.

Suddenly, he felt his blood rise to his brain, gravity itself was weaker for the a few moments. Itachi pressed his hands to the walls for stability, his stomach dropping as gravity took its hold again. For a moment, nothing happened, but the familiar feeling of the clay tongue forcing him out of the confines of the bird dropped him onto the dirt floor.

"One-time offer!" Deidara barked angrily. "If you get killed, it's not my fault. I'm only doing this so you don't destroy my bird! You're the idiot who wants to do everything on your own!"

Itachi found himself smiling, undeterred by the boy's feigned reluctance. He turned to thank the other but only caught a glimpse of the child rocketing into the air with the clay sculpture. A circle of dust swirled where he had previously been, smart to leave the area as soon as possible. If Itachi planned on dying, then Deidara had no plans on going with him.

_Tch!_ The blond clenched his teeth._ I may not need his help but he certainly needs ours. Why go alone? Idiot..._

_ Not only that but. Those shakes...they're not from the battle. They're from underground._ Deidara glanced at the lake, now safely high up in the sky.

* * *

"_Shinra Tensei!_"

_DOOM_

Sasori flipped mid-air and gripped at the water, hopelessly trying to slow his descent. A trail of splashes followed after him, fingers and shoes digging deeper into the glowing pool. The speed didn't let up and the puppeteer was forced past the pool onto the shore, knocked back as he barrelled into the wall at he very back of the cavern. A massive dent exploded where he impacted the wall, another heavy tremble shaking the cave. A second tremble caused the water's surface to ripple and fluctuate violently, the Kazekage puppet now beaten against the same wall.

Pein held his hand out, having had enough of the Akatsuki's insolence. His ringed eyes narrowed, taking his time to saunter over to his underling. "If you refuse to comply then I will kill you."

"Like hell you are." The redhead spoke through grit teeth, moving to his knees from the slumped position on the floor. His body stiffened, wooden joints buckling against his will. Sasori froze as a white sheet flitted past is vision, landing on his shoulder to join the other papers forming a white cast on his body. His limbs creaked, metal parts jammed. Even the cord in his stomach refused to move, the pivot unable to spin as it normally could. _Shit. Can't...move..._

Konan rose into the air, cloak breaking away into stacks of paper. "I thought you said you'd kill me this time. In the end, you still lose." _He's stronger now, more perceptive..._She kept the puppeteer's face clear of sheets, letting him gaze upon their god. An enraged flare danced in the redhead's eyes, menacing to anyone else. _No, it's not that. It's simply anger, hatred. He hasn't grown that way._

"I'm not dying here. I'm not gonna leave him alone!" _Not like I used to be..._Sasori roared, body still straining to break through the binds.

Pein didn't react, continuing to saunter towards the puppeteer menacingly, his gaze further amplified as the green glow of the water illuminated his face. "I will tell you something before you die. We've all experienced it, struggle, regret, pain. It is how we mature into adults; but true pain, that is what really forces us to grow up."

_Shing_

A black pike pointed inches away from the puppeteer's nose, then moved down to his chest. Sasori's heart sped up, beating harshly against his wooden body. Pein kept a relatively calm face, eyes however glaring at the other. "Your death with Deidara's first pain. It will be a milestone for him, unless you plan on halting his growth. Even if you aren't the one who attacked Itachi, you will pay the price for defying what god has willed. It's a shame. You were one of my most loyal members."

_Pein, isn't this too..._Konan's stoic expression fell, but she kept a good grip on Sasori's body.

Sasori wriggled in his cocoon, set on defying his 'god'. His arms were held tight and his legs were forced to the floor. His chakra strings refused to budge, and even if he did reach the Kazekage, his fingers wouldn't be able to move.

_Drip..._

_ Water?_ Sasori blinked and gauged the others expressions. Neither seemed to notice, and at first, he took it as nothing more than cave water. He gazed to the centre of the cavern ceiling, a steady stream of water leaking down. Surrounding droplets quickened their pace until they also streamed with liquid.

Pein and Konan were probably used to it, surrounded by water falling from the sky nearly every day, but Sasori had not been raised the same. In the desert, keeping a keen eye out for materials to survive was a must, and water was the most important of all. It kept the body hydrated and cooled a person down. In Sunagakure, an eye for water was favoured most amongst survivors.

Sasori had it too. Water wasn't abundant in the Land of Wind, but now, he could tell when there more water then there should have been. _Where is this cavern even located?_

A sudden tremble caused the cavern to shake, Pein raised his head, now coming to attention. Konan also began to notice, eyes directed towards the ceiling as cracks and crumbling echoed and more rocks plunged into the glowing pool. All fell silent, no one noticed the trembles before, simply passing it off as a result of their fight; but now that the fight had come to its end, there was no reason for the trembling to continue. As it seemed, something was happening above ground.

The tiny leaks exploded into full-blown falls, bucket-loads of water fell into the pool below, the ceiling began to curve inwards, threatening creaks and rumbling signalled the end of the rope for the weakened structure.

Without time to escape, the ceiling finally gave out, water rushing down in a heavy pour into the cavern. Sasori was quickly blown away by the current, thrown back against the wall and wherever else the tide pulled him.

Deidara watched from above, eyes wide at the sight as the land suddenly caved in on itself, the trees and earth falling into a massive hole underground. Kisame, Itachi, and Orochimaru were out of sight, presumably swallowed up by the hole. The lake water also poured into the earth, not dispersing deeper into the land. He hovered over the destruction before beginning to fly circles, looking for any signs of life.

"Itachi!"

The water swirled into a calm pool, some rocks rising to the surface. Deidara dared to fly closer, now only a few meters above the edge of what used to be the lake. Moonlight reflected off of the water, bits of strange green glowing pieces drifted all over. No reply came.

"Kisame no danna!"

...

A heavy silence flooded the area. Deidara began to contemplate the idea of them all dying, or knocked out from the force of the water. The thought made him panic slightly. What was he to do? Go find leader? Konan? Sasori? Kisame could deal with water well, so why wasn't he surfacing and reassuring him that he was fine?

Dread pulled the boy off of his bird, jumping down the short distance and landing onto the edge of the rocky wall. His weight pushed against the crumbling corner, causing it to give out. Deidara was unprepared as he fell, plunging into the water below. Again, his ears filled with the sounds of rushing liquid, voice silenced by the murky depths. Some bubbles rose from his mouth as he tried to scream out, arms flailing helplessly. His limbs felt weak, reaching out for anything.

No one was here to save him now. They were all dead if they weren't resurfacing.

_I can't swim..._


	37. Orochimaru vs Akatsuki

**Orochimaru vs Akatsuki**

It was a blunt sound. Like something loud in the distance, yet not ear-piercing. He opened his eyes in a flash, hearing the faint noise. He laid at the bottom of the new lake, steel parts serving to weigh his wooden body down. It took a while to register what had happened, since he remained there for a moment, wondering why the world didn't look right. Why the night sky was so distorted and blue.

Chakra strings shot out from his core, attaching themselves like re-formed muscle and tissue. The first tug was strenuous and nearly broke his limbs, the pressure and thickness of the water weighing down his motion. Carefully, the puppeteer adjusted and managed to flip himself over.

Sasori stood on the floor, knelt down as his eyes took in his surroundings. Dirt and large rocks settled on the ground, moonlight streaming through from the surface. Something white was in the distance, a tiny body shrouded by a stream of bubbles. Immediately, the redhead knew exactly what he was looking at, and rose from his spot. In a body like this, swimming wasn't an option. Neither was propelling himself with bladed wings that weren't meant to brave the waters. Instead, he unbuttoned his cloak around his abdomen as swiftly as he could manage, creating a small gap large enough that he could shove his hand into his stomach. Fingers curled around the coil, tearing out chunks of paper and releasing them to drift uselessly into the surrounding water. After a few hand-fulls, the cord twitched and shot out, slithering towards the body.

The cord slunk carefully around the child's torso and wrapped him up, gently dragging the boy to the surface. Deidara emerged from the depths, heavily drenched and motionless. With a few shakes from the cord, he broke into loud damp gasps and coughs. The boy blinked and looked at the cable, realizing immediately who it belonged to.

"Danna!" His voice came unnaturally high, briefly swinging his arms and legs around in glee. An innocent smile graced his expression as he eagerly watched the water come close again.

As gently as the first time he had been handled with one of Sasori's tails, Deidara was slowly lowered onto the lake and plopped him down where he could stand. By then, the cord wasted no time retreating and flitted back into the water.

Minutes passed until a hand finally erupted, quickly pressing to the surface of the water and hauling the rest of Sasori up. The puppeteer made an annoyed look as he staggered to a stand, the sight of his subordinate only serving to soften it a little. Sasori pinched the bridge of his nose as he re-buttoned his cloak. "This is why you learn to swim."

As before, Deidara rolled his eyes and huffed, adamant on holding back those lessons as far as possible. Further out onto the crater, the water stirred and some familiar faces began to emerge. Kisame rose from the surface, water pouring off his back and head. His robes clung to his muscled frame, dripping still even when he hoisted the mighty blade Samehada onto his shoulder. The shark made a curious look around, eyes resting on the two at last.

Along with him, several more emerged. Itachi rose to the top stomach first and eased himself onto a dry rock. The Uchiha made a gasp for air, breathing for a few moments as he wiped his wet bangs from his face. He curled up on the rock, one leg pressed to his chest as he tried to comprehend what just happened.

Another surfaced from the depths, a large white spherical structure, seemingly constructed of paper floated at the very edge of the lake nearby Itachi. Bits of water dripped off the edges, the a paper remained a dry texture, even after the water had drenched it heavily. A few seconds passed before the papers began to fall away, disintegrating into the surrounding water to reveal both Leader and Konan within the encasing, both unharmed and dry.

Both children blinked, surprised to see their leaders as well as so many others here. Deidara has not expected to find Sasori or Leader within the ruins, and Konan was quick to notice the arrival of both young ones and one other seemingly random swordsman member.

A pregnant silence fell, a slight tension building at the presence of so many other Akatsuki in the same space. Itachi shuffled to his feet and avoided eye contact with any of the others, keeping his gaze to the edge of the water. Kisame kept a wary eye for the last to emerge, knowing full-well a little cave-in like this would not kill someone like that guy. Where is he?

_ SPLOOSH_

Itachi bound in the air to avoid the four snakes extended towards him, jaws clamping shut at empty air. Itachi skid away, landing next to Deidara and Sasori. The snakes hissed in frustration but coiled around the rock, hauling up their master next. Orochimaru arrived with a frustrated scowl, barely gasping.

"Orochimaru?" Sasori blinked, eyes widening and narrowing at the sight of him. The blond accidentally caught the sannin's gaze, squeaking in fear before clinging closely to his master's wet cloak. Itachi held his breath.

Ringed eyes switched from every member and subordinate. Pein frowned and took a confident step forward. "Hold on. What is going on here?"

Orochimaru faltered at the voice, practically shrinking as he vigilantly glanced over at the glaring ginger. Even if the question was directed towards everyone, he knew for a fact, everyone was looking at him. No surprise really, he was the only one without the cloak, Deidara excluded. Just looking at the set arena, his odds were stacked against him. Six enemies, and not a single one of his underlings in sight. Orochimaru set his glare onto the Uchiha boy, his stoic expression serving to push him further towards the edge. No fear at all. Who did this kid think he was? The infamous murderer of the Uchiha plan perhaps, but he was only thirteen, barely a man.

_CRASH_

A gigantic wave exploded from the spot. Sasori shielded himself with his arm, keeping an eye on the action as he had just witnessed Kisame drop his sword right on the Sannin's back. The leaders stayed indifferent, easily withstanding the wave as if it were nothing but a wind.

The rush of water calmed, revealing Kisame bent over as he grasped his blade. A huge dent was impacted into the stone, a crushed body beneath the edge of Samehada, arms twisted awkwardly and the snakes erupted in smoke. The shark took a good look at his work, smirking as he raised his blade to reveal the frozen horrified expression etched into Orochimaru's face. His back was crushed, a few sickening pops and cracks could be heard as the weight lifted from the body. Kisame stood proudly. "That wasn't so hard."

With a resolved expression, he turned to their leader. "Orochimaru defected from the Akatsuki. I was just cleaning up."

_So cool!_ Deidara's eyes twinkled, impressed by the brute force of Kisame's swing. The utter destruction pleased him, and with everyone alive except for the snake, the cave-in no longer bothered him. On the other hand, Sasori wasn't pleased at all, teeth still clenched as he snarled. "_You idiot_!"

Soon enough, the others turned to the puppeteer. Sasori was seething with an expression that showed a rare mix between fear and rage. "_That won't kill him_!"

As if right on the cue, popping sounds emitted from the broken spine of the sannin. Orochimaru's skin twisted like cloth as he head spun with a horrible crack, chin rested on the floor. Out of his mouth, a black form emerged and stretched the jaw farther and farther. Long straight hair fell from the chin of the mouth, draping forward slick with saliva.

A battle cry rang out as Samehada was brought down upon the crushed body once more, consuming them both in a cloud of dust and water. Out of the cloud, Orochimaru slithered towards Itachi. The boy activated his sharingan, eyes swirling into a red pinwheel shape in hopes of capturing the snake dead in his tracks. Sasori shifted into a stance as he tried to hold his partner still with chakra strings, just missing as the former Leaf-ninja passed them both and ran up the cave wall. Several papers gathered and swiftly formed a barrier at the top, blocking escape.

Pein watched from afar, eyeing the old attire of the sannin. Looking at the way he treated the others, there was no doubt that he was defecting. Their leader made a steely expression, mouth set in a thin line as he locked onto the new enemy of the Akatsuki. With a commanding voice, he set new orders to the organization. "Orochimaru has turned against us, a common enemy. As our enemy, we as the Akatsuki cannot let him live. That is our new top priority right now."

"...So we get to kill him?" Kisame grinned eagerly.

A slow nod from their leader was enough to start a war. In a few split seconds, Orochimaru was immediately surrounded by the Akatsuki. Itachi, Kisame, and Sasori cornered him while Konan blocked off all escape into the sky.

Samehada shook and tore at the bandages completely, rustling hungrily in his wielder's hand. Kisame threw the sword into the air and formed a seal with his hands. "_Water Style: Super Exploding Water Shockwave_."

Sasori emerged from a cloud of smoke. Clinking emitted from Hiruko as it stood at the ready by the puppeteer's side. All four limbs moved outspread as it crouched low to the lake, tail hovered threateningly over the redhead and the puppet.

"_Fire style: Pheonix Flower Jutsu_." Shuriken fanned out from Itachi's hands as he swiped them into the air, quickly lighting them on fire with a simple exhale of chakra. The shuriken wheeled about and sparked brightly, flying towards the target.

"_Shikigami Dance_." A wave of white sheets pooled from Konan's back, creating a massive wall of paper above the shinobi. The very grandeur of the vast wall served to block out the moon and cast a dark shadow over them all. Sasori couldn't help but shiver slightly, frowning at the sight of it. Even after their battle, she still had so much chakra to spend.

Orochimaru sweated slightly. From the left, an enormous wave crashed through the rubble as it approached. From the right, Hiruko's tail was striking down at him. From the back, countless flaming shuriken flew his way. Even from the sky was the growing shadow of the Akatsuki threatening him. This was a typical group attack, and yet on a level only the likes of the Akatsuki could achieve.

Left, right, front, back, above, several attacks swarmed the snake. Orochimaru growled as Hiruko's tail slammed him into the nearest wall, causing the land to quake behind him. The sannin cracked an eye open, able to catch a second of each member bounding away from each other, as if clearing a path.

"_Almighty Push_."

Even Konan backed off into the sky as the lake bed stirred and grew, an invisible force pushing the water back to reveal the dry land at the bottom. The very pulse generated a wind strong enough to knock back the other members, a grand slammed into the wall, successfully, tearing the land apart as a single slash threw trees and rocks into the air.

Deidara skidded back, having never deal with this kind of force before. The very blast sent a shock wave beyond any explosion he's ever made before. The wind rushed at his small body, eventually throwing him off balance and sending the child flying back.

The next thing he knew, he was caught and held like a sack of potatoes. Deidara blinked and chirped with a smile. "Danna!"

"_That _danna right?"

The hoarse voice caught him off guard, shark teeth grinning back at him. Deidara's smile fell but he was less than disappointed, more surprised to see that it was him who had broke his fall. "Kisame?"

Kisame frowned. "Aw, where did the master part go?"

The boy chuckled and looked around, the blast having left a deep ravine in the land, filled with lake water at the bottom. He gazed about the caved in cavern, the other members safely out the way of Pein's attack, as if they knew it was coming from a mile away. The boy caught his danna's gaze for a moment, a relieved look briefly coming over Sasori's face before he quickly averted his eyes and directed them towards the newly formed ravine. Konan waited in the sky, a swarm of papers slowly floating in her presence. From what it seemed, everyone was accounted for.

What about Itachi? Deidara wriggled out of Kisame's grasp and plopped down onto the water to whirl his head around. "Where's Itachi?"

"Itachi?" Kisame repeated and copied the boy's actions.

_BOOM_

A large white snake slithered into the air in the distance, capturing everyone's attention. Immediately, Deidara noticed something wrong about the snake, not quite normal other than its massive size. The scales didn't look right, they weren't shiny and neatly rowed. Not only that, but a figure seemed wedged between its jaws.

* * *

Itachi strained himself to keep the mouth pried open, one hand firmly grasping the snake's nose and his shoes pressed against the bottom jaw. The world grew smaller by the second, trees becoming dots and the ravine shrinking into nothing more than a ragged line on the earth. He was gaining height, the stars moving ever closer as they continued to push into the sky.

"ITACHI!" Orochimaru hissed, further pressuring the boy and forcing his jaws to close. The many albino snakes making up his scales rattled to life, a few quickly slithering over and coiling around Itachi's body. With a single yank, the Uchiha was pulled in, jaws finally clamping shut to engulf him into the darkness. The boy barely stood a chance as the world disappeared around him, now stuck within a slick and gooey space, soft tissue flesh pulsating around him and squishing him further into the stomach.

The Akatsuki watched as their newest member was quickly consumed by the giant beast, a silence falling over each of them as the snake fell back to the earth like a cut ribbon.

"Itachi..." Deidara's eyes widened. He stepped forward and broke into a run.

Two arms wrapped around his torso and halted the boy, lifting him into the air. Deidara squirmed and kicked, even chomping down on the arm with his hand mouths to let him go. Sasori remained unfazed, numb to the bite. "He's dead brat."

"You're _wrong! He's not!_ Danna we have to go get him out!"

The puppeteer spoke exasperatedly. "He just got eaten by a giant snake, what part of that don't you understand?"

"He's not dead."

Pein tilted his head upwards, exuding an aura of authority over the other members. The blond quickly calmed, all eyes directed towards their leader. The pierced man paused, then gazed at the other Akatsuki expectantly. "Well? Go. I can still sense that his chakra is still there, he's very much alive. It's too early to let Itachi to die on us."

On that very order, Kisame bounded towards the ravine while Konan swooped in after him. In attempt to follow, Deidara wriggled again and clung to Sasori's arm, earning a puzzled look from the elder. "What are you doing?"

"I wanna get on your back."

"You want to-" Sasori groaned and pried the little boy off of him, plopping him down on the water and leaning over him. "I haven't given you one of those since the Jirou attack."

"Yeah!" Deidara jumped up and wrapped both arms around Sasori's neck to swing around on his back. With a determined look, he pointed towards the ravine heroically. "You're faster so we can go save Itachi!"

At that moment, the puppeteer could have burned of embarrassment, forced to lean forward due to the added strain on his back. The boy had surely gained weight over the years. Warily, he glanced over at the Akatsuki leader who stared him down. "Hurry up, Sasori."

"Ugh. I know that." Sasori snorted, then bucked the little boy off his back.

Deidara fell off and caught himself, a displeased look crossing his face. He was ready to protest but the words died in his throat as he met eyes with his master. The puppeteer made a sound similar to a sigh and spoke flatly. "You're not going."

As expected, the child argued and began to wave his arms around to emphasize his point. "Eh? Why? I'm stronger now! You know it!"

"We've talked about this before, Deidara."

The boy shrunk to a silence, grumbling under his breath as he watched the other two Akatsuki disappear down the newly created gorge. He began to regret letting Itachi out, he knew this would happen, and he didn't act on what was probably the better option. Now, the boy would deal with the possibility of being partially responsible for Itachi's death, if anyone found out that was.

Exchanging a tense nod with their leader, Sasori seemed to momentarily glare before heading off, leaping onto a stray stone next to the ravine entrance. The puppeteer turned back to his subordinate to inform him of one last thing. "Tobi will take care of you."

Deidara didn't even get the chance to at surprised as two hands cupped underneath his arms and hauled him into the air. In suite, a loud and squeaky voice rang in his ears. "THAT'S RIGHT!"

* * *

_(Naruto Shippuden Movie 6 OST Track 19 – Middle Age Attack!)_

_BOOM_

A streak of blood splattered into the water, the snake tail wriggling still while the majority of Orochimaru's body escaped the slash. Kisame kept a grin, impressed by the bulky snake's speed. Meanwhile, Sasori quickly wrapped the snake tail in chakra strings and flung the piece elsewhere into a corner.

Kisame observed the massive snake move about and dodge the incoming paper pikes, each one striking the ground just an inch away. Moving swiftly, the serpent easily slithered out of danger and tried to make an escape, turning to the edge of the ravine where a hill of rubble created an easy exit. Immediately, Konan raised her arms, as if raising the wall of paper that quickly blocked his way.

A curious rushing sound caught his attention, as the shark rested Samehada on his shoulder. A fierce fire spewed out of Sasori's palm, burning the snail tail into a crisp. Kisame cocked his head. "Why are you burning it?"

"His blood is poisonous. When exposed to air, it evaporates and makes a poison mist. This is the only way to deal with it." The glow of the fire ceased once the flame dissipated and left a pile of black ashes. The redhead turned back to the others and waited along the bottom as Konan dealt with keeping Orochimaru contained within the area, blocking off all exits.

The white snake scaled up the ravine wall, forced to go even further than the ledge as a humongous wall of paper cupped the entire gully and drove him up. A massive shadow formed and covered over the moon, both Akatsuki watching as their superior abruptly formed a ceiling and caged the serpent within.

Orochimaru hissed as his face hit the wall and fell back towards the bottom of the ravine. His stomach churned, as massive object still wriggling in his gut. He cracked his eyes open, snarling at the Akatsuki._ Dammit! I can't shut down this vessel if they keep attacking me!_

"Cutting and hacking him to pieces won't do anything, he'll just regenerate." Sasori explained while eyeing his former partner's descent and took a ready stance. "I'll extract Itachi, after all, I'm not effected by the poison gas."

"Gotcha." Kisame nodded.

With a loud splash, the snake fell into the water and fell into the depths. Immediately, the swordsman pressed his hand to the surface. "_Water style: Five Hungry Sharks_."

A small rush of liquid squirted from his finger tips and exploded into the river. A total of five sharks encircled the serpent, twisting in a corkscrew to churn the water. Soon enough, a whirlpool formed and dragged the snake along with it, driving it to the bottom of the shallow river. The ground shook upon impact, a flurry of bubbles escaped to the surface to reveal the five sharks pinning the snake down. Several small snakes coiled around their assailant's, biting down uselessly against the water-formed sharks.

At the top, a barrage of paper sheets dove into the river and encircled the five sharks. It folded into a single wall above them before dragging out and forcing the water aside, creating a dry opening that exposed Orochimaru to dry land.

Sasori jumped into the pit, quickly landing besides the wriggling snake. The sharks shuffled aside to let the puppeteer through. As he approached, the bloodied water began to hiss and evaporate into a poisonous steam and shrouded the paper funnel from the bottom to the very top. Sasori remained calm and unaffected by sauntering over the snake.

"I hate you." Orochimaru hissed out. Sasori barely acknowledged the statement and summoned one of his bladed puppets and lowered one of the claw blades to his stomach.

_SLASH_

The wound didn't remain silent, as a rush of white snakes emerged from the cut and flooded over Sasori. Sasori grit his teeth and tried to slice them away but the force was stronger than any water.

More fled the wound and crashed into the sharks, causing them to disperse into water. Upon release, Orochimaru jerked and squirmed violently before biting into the paper. Sasori tried to move his hands and fingers, but found himself overpowered by the rush of snakes. Purple pooled around the bitten area of the wall and hissed. It started with a few spurts and quickly grew into a giant hole as the acidic venom ate away at the paper.

Sasori scowled as his former-partner slipped into the hole and escaped the funnel, leaving him with the sea of snakes to deal with. He growled and raised his hands but paused immediately. _Crap. If I burn them, I'll end up burning the paper too! I'm stuck! Not only that, but if these snakes get under the cloak..._ "Konan! Get me out of here!" He yelled.

A surge of papers cupped the puppeteer and elevated him up while the bottom of the funnel dispersed, allowing water to drain in and drown the reptiles. Sasori emerged from the funnel before the sheets disappeared and stumbled to a stop. Immediately, he tore a hand into his cloak and pulled out several snakes and began to chuck them away. Once finished, Sasori patted down his clothes to make sure nothing else was stowing away and turned to the others.

By now, Orochimaru was scraped and beaten, driven into a corner by the papers and Kisame's sharks. The albino snake's angular face hissed. "_Good riddance, Akatsuki_!"

With a powerful swipe of his tail, the rubble behind him fell and revealed an entrance, several torches lighting up the hall within. Orochimaru slipped into the hall, darting into the maze of a hideout.

Kisame charged after him but quickly found himself blasted away by an invisible barrier at the very foot of the entrance. Konan frowned and flooded her papers over the entrance, several explosive tags written on the sheets immediately told the other Akatsuki to back off. With a grunt, the tags exploded in a cloud of debris. The cloud dispersed and revealed the entrance again, undamaged by the force.

Konan's face fell, realizing quickly that they were losing time. "I can't get through."

"Another one of those power deflecting barriers." Kisame explained.

The puppeteer clicked his tongue. A few seconds was enough for Orochimaru to escape, so even if he tried to open the seal, Itachi was as good as dead. Sasori fished through his sleeve and pulled out a wad of numbered tags. "We'll have to wait a bit, but I'll give this a try."_ It'll probably be too late by then though._

* * *

He opened his eyes to reveal a strange world. The sky was nothing but a dull red while the earth was made up of several fleshy mounds of differing heights. A squishy substance engulfed his body, slowly working its way over his shoulders. Itachi immediately began to think, searching his mind for any brilliant plans or explanations but only found his thoughts clouded.

_I'm in panic. I have to calm down._ Itachi took a deep breath in but recoiled immediately, the horrid stench filling his lungs. He forced himself to take small breathes instead, but organizing the panic only managed to spread the thick mist over his mind even further.

_I can't move. What's happening to me?_

The fleshy substance worked its way around his head, cold saliva pulsating against his skin. Itachi felt himself go numb, no longer able to feel his feet. His consciousness began to fade and the world blurred. His very being faded, and the Uchiha swore, he felt as if the fleshy substance was of his very own body.

In an last ditch attempt to pull himself out, Itachi clung on his memories, an image of a small little boy around age six flashed into his mind.

_ Sasuke._

* * *

**A/N: Finally, I'm able to write again. I actually wrote an extra scene in here for Sasori specifically but it caused the plot to swerve in a different direction so I cut it out. ****Next chapter is the end of this arc! I also made sure to make this chapter longer to make up for the time!**

**Thanks for reading! Nice to meet ya! Please review if you'd like!**


	38. The Young Flames

**The Young Flames**

_(Naruto Shippuden Movie 6 OST Track 20 - Conflict)_

_"Big brother!"_

The bright grinning face of the little boy flashed in his mind, accompanied by the gentle expression of his mother. Life had been so peaceful back then, when the only things that mattered were his studies. From the very moment his sibling was be born, Itachi's life had changed forever. No longer would his room remain silent with the scratching of his pencil, but little footfalls and occasional giggles from the baby. Years had come and passed, and later on that young toddler had grown into an excellent academy student, always padding after his footsteps.

_ "Play with me!" Sasuke chirped, yanking at the ten-year old's sleeve. Itachi blinked and looked down with a clueless face. _

_ "No, no, not today. Your big brother has homework." The gentle coo of his mother made the young boy edge away with a pout. Puffing up his cheeks, the younger Uchiha began to wave the tiny dinosaur figurine in the air. _

_ "Mommy! Play with me!" _

_ "I have to cook dinner dear." _

_ Immediately, the excited energy ceased within the child. Itachi blinked again and switched between the homework on the table and Sasuke. "I can do my homework later. I just remembered, I want to finish a game."_

_ Their mother sighed. "Don't take long."_

The pinwheel pattern began to fade as the mist blanketed more and more of his consciousness, senses going duller and duller until it was hard to distinguish between his own body and the world around him. His body swayed back and forth, the shine of his eyes beginning to go dreary.

_Is this how I'm going to die?_ Itachi thought to himself, no longer focused on pushing back the clouds that rolled in.

* * *

_I knew it_. "We're too late." Sasori muttered, keeping a wary eye on the withering snake. His hand rested on the now open room door.

A long shadow cast over the dark area, a large white serpent resting in a curled position within the room. Already, the living scales had begun to die as a mass of brown took over their colour and crumbled away. The other Akatsuki had already gathered within the room, Konan's face falling at the claim.

Kisame raised his sword over the sleeping giant with a frown. "What are you talking about? Samehada can still sense his chakra, he's alive."

"You don't get it. Orochimaru doesn't kill who he swallows." Sasori grunted in annoyance. "In order to steal their body, it has to remain alive. The process has already begun. That form is dying."

"Then we'll take Itachi out before it ends." The shark continued. "I don't care if his blood is poisonous. Itachi's my first good partner in a long time."

* * *

The crying wails of a baby after birth rang inside his head, a sound so loud and sharp it sliced through the mist like a blade. Itachi fell into confusion for a moment, wondering why he felt so disturbed by the sound. Why was a baby crying? Who was crying? It felt like his being was floating in a liquid, weightless, limbs numb against the ocean current. There was nothing, nothing but the piercing wail. Like sitting in an empty room with the alarm clock ringing, and yet he had no idea where it was nor why he had to wake up.

It was annoying, but he couldn't sleep with it on. It wasn't something he could ignore, no matter how much his muscles ached.

_"It's your new brother! His name is Sasuke."_

_ Itachi pressed both arms to the edge of the bed and hopped a little, hoping to get a good look at the families newest addition. A wrinkled baby lay cradled in his mother's arms, wrapped in a soft blanket. Slowly, his brother was inched closer to the young boy, giving the Uchiha a good look at the newborn. _

_ It was strange, that feeling he got. He stared at Sasuke for a moment, then hesitantly reached out with his hand to touch it. Due to the head being closest, his fingers brushed against the baby's forehead and caused the child to break into a wail. At the reaction, Itachi recoiled his hand and looked up at his mother with concern. _

_ Mikoto cooed and rocked the baby, giving a tired look at her first-born. "Don't worry, you didn't do anything wrong."_

_ Sasuke cried louder, eventually causing Itachi to cover his ears. "He's so noisy."_

_ "That's how all babies cry." His mother chuckled and kept on rocking the young baby boy until it fell silent. "Take care of your little brother, okay Itachi?"_

_ That's right. I had a mother, and a father, and brother too._ Itachi pondered the thought as curiosity took over and he began to dig deeper. Who was he? What kind of person had he been? He wanted to sleep, but the crying never ceased. It pierced his mind, causing a shiver to run down his back. Slowly, the memories resurfaced, each one popping up like submerged toys in a tub. From his very first memory, to the massacre, to his very last. The images and scenes played like a movie and ran by like a speeding train. Even as his body sunk into the deep dark abyss, one of his more recent memories sparked a jolt in his nerves.

_ The raven sat there, wide-eyed. Had he just heard that from a kid? A child much younger than himself? No, they weren't kids, not little ones as he said. He pondered the idea, the idea of death causing something to sink in his chest. "If I'm going to die...I want it to be for my family."_

_ The bomber looked at him strangely for moment. "But they're all dead, you killed them." He turned and fiddled with some more clay, rather happy that his hands were too sleepy to do anything with it. "Hmm...I guess if I want to die..."_

_ His face contorted into a puzzled look, mind coming to a blank. "I don't know how I want to die."_

To Itachi Uchiha, his family had always been the most important. The clan had always been important, but not the way his father saw it. In death, it felt like he was sitting in a theater, watching the show play out on the big screen. Marionettes to the gods of the stage, the puppeteer who ruled over the characters of the performance. As it seemed, Itachi Uchiha was a very important character, a villain as it seemed.

They were so life-like though, the puppeteers must have been talented. Like a fire was lit within each actor, everyone playing a role in his memories, like characters in a movie.

A fire.

That little boy, that small child he considered family. He was still alive, still out there while he rested in this empty pool of water. Once Itachi Uchiha was gone, Sasuke Uchiha would remain alone forever.

Alone for the rest of eternity?

_No._

A sudden energy coursed through his body as Itachi's eyes fluttered open, his body jerking to awake. Something still pushed at his limbs though, keeping them locked in place. Water splashed about as the raven struggled with clenched teeth. With another blink, the world had changed. Engulfed in the flesh, mounds of the same strange earth encased bodies within. Itachi was trapped, and even if he he regained his consciousness, he knew the mist would come back.

He would die if he stayed here.

Keeping the image of his brother framed in his mind, Itachi slowly closed his lids and focused. A different pattern swirled into his pupils, a dangerous red glint showing once he opened them again. It took the last of effort but the thirteen-year old stared stiffly at the floor. His last resort.

"Amaterasu!"

* * *

Suddenly, the great serpent jolted awake and uncurled from its spot. Everyone in the room came to attention as Orochimaru cried out in agony, his long white body crashed into the walls and swiped Sasori aside like a bug. Konan swiftly caught the other in a bed of sheets as she watched the snake thrash about the room in pain. Nearby, Kisame easily caught each blow, letting his sword take the brunt of the attack each time but just barely escaping being swept aside like the puppeteer.

Everyone emerged from the room and observed the wall collapse against the weight of the giant snake. In single burst, a rush of black flames flitted to the surface of the snake's body, burning fiercely away at Orochimaru's stomach. The Akatsuki watched warily, keeping a good distance from the inferno.

With one last cry, a form was regurgitated from the snake's mouth as Orochimaru's normal body slithered out and winded down the hall. Sasori's eyes followed his former partner and moved briefly to pursue him.

"Wait!"

Konan stared at the massive serpent's limp body. The burned wound opened up to reveal many more white snakes coated in a red blood like guts. Each snake hissed out in pain as their scales and flesh were roasted away into a fine ash. A clear hole finally appeared from the mass of smaller reptiles and a leg emerged, dressed in the Akatsuki uniform.

Immediately, Konan acted, "He's still alive! Extract Itachi before the flames get to him!"

Itachi's eyes finally opened, face squished within the fleshy moistness of Orochimaru's stomach. Immediately, he recoiled at the smell and scrunched up his nose. Regardless, this was a good sign. He had broken out of the mental plane and was back in reality, his sharingan made it clear. Hissing sounds were the first thing he heard as well as the crackle of flesh as it burned against the fire. Black flames did not glow like normal fire, so even as the stomach seemed dark and black, he could tell as the heat rushed against his face that he was dangerously close.

Voices came next, a giant glaring blade punctured the stomach and tore it open. The stomach rocked and rolled over, quickly dropping Itachi onto the cold hard floor with a dull wet thud.

Sasori attempted to check on their fellow member's condition but Itachi wasted no time to rest. He stumbled into a stand and shoved away any help that the others might have offered. The raven cupped a hand over his eye as it bled due to the stress.

"I can't..." Itachi breathed heavily and darted down the hall after Orochimaru.

From the outside, Itachi emerged first at the ravine before all others, standing on the ledge of what was left of this hall. The other Akatsuki followed after and stopped briefly as they caught a glimpse of a splash in the water.

"Damn." Sasori cursed.

"It's okay." Itachi gasped and coughed, "I used Amaterasu...the fire cannot be put out unless Orochimaru is burnt to ash. At full strength, it will burn for seven days and seven nights. It's over." A silence came over every member while the young raven caught his breath. He leaned against the wall and pressed his throbbing forehead to the cold surface._ But I'm inexperienced...they will burn for a few minutes at best..._

* * *

"I see, so that's what happened." Pein made an dismissive nod.

Everyone stood at the clearing near Sasori's hill, the bright moon just edging towards the west of the sky. The night was beginning to wane, and recent destruction of the land had left the forest in an eery silence. Not even the crickets chirped freely, completely void of any fauna. Even the village had ceased all noise, either the citizens were asleep or too scared out of their wits to make even a murmur.

As per usual, Deidara was required to step back from meeting like these, though still able to spectate as he stood just ten feet away from Konan. Itachi was allowed to sit down due to his condition, a bandage wrapped over his left eye while he held onto his headband. Kisame and Sasori also had taken some damage, though Sasori looked far more beat up in terms of ragged clothing and scrapes than the shark had. The blond felt slightly concerned, what had happened to his danna to sustain what would be considered injuries on any normal human? He'd seen the fight, the redhead rarely took a hit. How long had Sasori been like that?

Said puppeteer furrowed his eyebrows at his leader expectantly. "That's the whole story then. So, is my name cleared?"

Pein stood for a moment, then turned a sharp eye at his underling. The puppeteer frowned at the gaze, sensing a tension rise.

"Regardless, you openly refused orders and threatened your leader in the process. It's grounds for punishment."

The other Akatsuki backed up and made way for Pein to pass through. The ringed-eye man approached the puppeteer menacingly. Sasori clenched his teeth and stepped back but continued to stand his ground. He was in no condition and no place to fight back, but even then, he had no wish to die today either.

Deidara blinked and began to jog forward only to have Konan's hand press quickly to his chest. The little boy glanced up, demanding an explanation only to find a faltering steely expression on the woman's face.

_Shing_

A single gleaming black rod slipped out from Pein's sleeve and raised itself slowly to point at Sasori's chest and directly at his heart. Immediately, the redhead halted all movement as if he were being preyed on. In an instant, the pike could shoot out and strike him down right then and there, and running away wouldn't result in anything but a more brutal death. Surrounded by Akatsuki like himself, he had not a doubt Pein would not hesitate to treat him the very same way they had treated Orochimaru.

"This is ridiculous. I followed your orders!" Sasori stiffly managed out and kept a trained eye on the sharpened pike. "I helped get Itachi back and fight Orochimaru!"

Itachi blinked and glanced at the other members hastily. None of them seemed to be the slightest bit concerned for their fellow member, either watching in morbid amusement or observing their leader closely to make sure they didn't caught up in the crossfire. The only one who seemed unsettled by all of this was Deidara, who stood next to Konan with a panicked expression.

For a moment, a pang of pity struck Itachi as he watched the scene. Of course, what did he expect. For whatever moment he thought he might have gotten used to this organization, there was no escape from the reality. As it seems, Deidara had been just as duped as he was, only far deeper into the fantasy of a safe haven.

"It doesn't matter. This is the only way to atone."

Konan blinked as her arm was shoved aside harshly. Sasori watched in horror as his subordinate darted in front of him and held both arms out protectively. Deidara's face twisted in in a desperate manner, a bead of sweat rolling down his forehead as it remained only a two or so feet away from the dangerous point of the rod.

Pein's gaze fell to the little child and his frown deepened. "You too?"

The other members observed the scene quite unlike any they've ever seen before. A subordinate had the nerve to come up and defend their master in the face of Amegakure's god? What kind of foolish act was that? With no plan, and definitely far below the rain ninja in skill. What did the clay artist hope to do?

"What are you doing? Brat?" Sasori hissed.

Deidara ignored his master's comment and stood firmly in front of him, locking a weak glare towards his leader. His legs trembled, body shivering in absolute fear in front of the Akatsuki founder. Regardless, he remained and gulped. "I don't know what danna did, but I'll take his punishment!"

If even possible, the already silent Akatsuki fell deeper into the gloom, all eyes falling on the reckless blond. Konan's mask broke and her face fell, tempted to step in and do something. Pein didn't falter, then spoke warningly. "Sasori's punishment is death. Do you want to die?"

The corners of Deidara's mouth curled into a forced smile. "You know, I didn't know how I wanted to die, but now, I know I want to die for my master. Itachi asked me how far I would go for Sasori no danna. This is as far as I go. Yeah, this is it."

Tobi watched from afar, eyes lidded. So this was the boy that the little seven-year old had become? He didn't know whether to think it was pathetic or noble. Nearby, his plant companion was practically at the edge of his seat, not a single comment coming by.

"You brat! Get out of here!" Sasori sliced his hand through the air for emphasis, only to find his words fell on deaf ears.

His arms fell and swung limply as the boy's face fell flat. He wasn't prepared for it, and the situation seemingly came out of nowhere, but this was as far as he'd go. This is the sacrifice he'd make. It was finally time to return the favour. Whether or not he had been prepared at all was trivial.

_You're just rambling nonsense now!_ The puppeteer swiftly scooped up the boy in his arms and tried to put him aside only to find picking the tiny bomber up like trying to pick up an enraged cat. The boy began to squirm out of his grasp fiercely and demanded to be put down.

Pein stayed aloof from the two, continuing to hold the rod dangerously in their direction. Konan's anxiety had not escaped him, but he could not ignore whatever treason any of his members committed. Sasori was due to die, and Deidara was coming close. He was no softy by any means.

"I am moved by your loyalty."

The duo paused and stared at the ginger. A quiet gasp and murmur fell over the other members who quickly ceased their momentary chat to listen in.

"Make no mistake, your act is noble, I acknowledge that."

Deidara felt the death grip around his body loosen. A sweeping breeze moved over the grassy hill, and flitted at everyone's cloaks. Even the puppeteer was coloured shocked, having nothing to say but wait for their leader's next words. His hammering heart began to finally slow, the sharpened rod no longer seemed so scary. In the grass, Itachi made a sigh of relief and closed his eyes while the other members looked on in curiosity. The scene however only served to make Konan tense up more, barely comforted at all by those words.

Sasori remained wide-eyed and collapsed to his knees in a slump. Eyes directed towards the floor, he slowly gazed up at his subordinate, who kept his own locked with their leader. Brown irises stayed trained on the young blond. It had been so long since he'd felt so helpless, so useless. His body was still able to fight, but it was a lost battle from the very beginning. Now, everything was going to be okay. He should have known things would turn out right.

They were supposed to after all. Like how every good story ends. Like every single story his parents had ever read to him before bed.

_ It's going to be a happy ending._

"You will both die."

Konan's eyes widened and she clenched her fists as the rod rose into the air.

* * *

_A piercing wail echoed through the streets, its high pitch contrasted against the heavy thud of the rain. She could feel the cold droplets trickle down her nose and drip down to the watery pool below. A dear friend stood further down the backstreet, his form taking on the body of a person who no longer strode about the earth in honesty. _

_ Blood splattered against the alley wall with two Amegakure uniform bodies slumped at their base. A little girl no older than ten had nothing else to do but cry out, a piercing wail escaping her gaped mouth. A teddy bear slung against her leg, one torn arm still grasped in the orphaned child's hand. _

_ "She's still young. Do you have to?" She spoke quietly and averted her gaze. The question was not an odd one. Nagato had answered her before. _

_ "Hanzo is dead. These shinobi were loyal to him and refused to serve us after his fall. Everyone in relation, even family must die. Someday, this child may rise against us in her parent's name. We cannot let her live."_

_ A streak of lightening crossed the sky and the world briefly lit up in a darkened shadow of light and dark contrast. The child pushed her voice even further and cried out to the sky above, clothes slightly stained in the blood of her own. Pein stepped forward and raised the pike over the girl's head and Konan closed her eyes and attempted to drone out all sound. _

_ KRSH_

* * *

Even since those times, since the massacre had stopped and nation was filtered until nothing put a pure race of loyal followers remained. Pein had not softened the slightest bit. The scene would repeat itself, and again, nothing could be done about it. Konan felt it eventually easier to let it go and allow the children of those families to die all around her. Her soul had hardened and her face slowly lost all emotion.

To watch as their signature puppeteer resume his hold tightly onto the young former Iwagakure child and the boy only able to do nothing but close his eyes. The pike would swing down with its mighty force and strike them both to the ground until their bodies lost all movement.

Blood would be shed again.

A pained cry rang out.

Pein stood above the duo, hand extended away from them as the long rod struck the ground in the bushes elsewhere. Screwed eyes remained shut for a moment before Deidara finally had the courage to open them. Both ninja blinked for a couple of moments as they found that neither of them had been impaled.

Instead, a strangled gasp came from the nearby bushes. Pein dropped his arm and spoke. "Bonds like that will kill you both someday. It is foolish trust like that that ends up killing more lives than it was meant to save. Even when one dies, we must move on by breaking those ties we held in our hearts. You have survived today, but whether you survive tomorrow is simply the decision of god."

Pein stood for a moment, then turned to the forest in the distance. Along with him, the other members followed in suite except for Deidara, who continued to snuggle closer into his danna's cloak, tears creeping up in his eyes.

"I do not appreciate eavesdropping."

The brush rustled and a figure slowly staggered into the open. Kabuto stood and held an arm around his side. Blood seeped through his clothes and dripped down his pants, indicating that the rod had struck his side but barely impaled him. He kept his position hunched over, beaten and bloody from his encounter with Kisame.

Kabuto smirked. _Oh, I'm in for it now..._

* * *

**A/N: I'm not sure if I added too many of anything in this chapter. I may rewrite but for now, this is staying as it is. I'll try to work things out in the next chap. ****One more thing! Thank you for TWO-HUNDRED REVIEWS! This is not only amazing but I got 200 right on my Birthday!(Sept 25) What are the odds? This the best coincidence I've ever had in a while!**

**Thanks for reading! Nice to meet ya! Please review if you'd like!**


	39. Kabuto Yakushi

**Kabuto Yakushi**

Emerging from a small pool, a snake slithered to the surface, its tail burnt to a stub. With every movement and rock that dragged at the sear, the snake would hiss and jerk in pain. It wasted no time by quickly prying its jaws and regurgitated a human form onto the land. Orochimaru gasped for air and pressed his arms to the floor as it pulled his last leg out of the mouth of the dead corpse. He took a moment to cough and curse to himself before lifting his gaze to the dark forest ahead.

It took less than a couple of minutes for the flames to dissipate, despite continuing to blaze on even when submerged in water. The snake was lucky to have found a underground stream and use a smaller snake body to move into it and successfully escape the ravine. Even when the flame had burnt out in the pool, Orochimaru knew better than to resume his challenge to the Akatsuki and his attempted kidnapping of Itachi. With the state his body was in, he stood no chance against the more able and younger members of the organization. Currently, he was at the old age of forty-five, while his former partner and the other members were only reaching their thirties. Even with the power he possessed, using the form of the great white snake costed large amounts of chakra.

Orochimaru's right arm gave out and he slumped in heap. Kabuto had not come to aid him, meaning that he probably also got caught in the crossfire somehow. Regardless, his loss meant little, it would not be a wild-guess that Kabuto during the fight, be it killed or of his own wounds. _Simple enough, I'll just replace him._

* * *

He'd need to get new lenses. Kabuto adjusted his glasses before his body visibly tensed up as a mild pain shot up from his stomach to his chest. For a moment, he slouched to the floor and hitched his breath to wait until the pang of pain had faded away.

Kisame Hoshigaki was definitely a man to be feared. For a shinobi who specialized in using chakra-based jutsu, the infamous Samehada's ability to absorb that very energy came as a surprise. His attempts to defend the hideout from the intruders advances were destroyed immediately, as even with his wit, the sheer force and brute strength of the former Kiri-ninja had overwhelmed him completely. He could have offered no help in the fight against the Akatsuki, leaving Orochimaru to deal with things on his own. Even now, the medic-ninja knew one thing and that was that his master would not appreciate him returning in such as a state, empty-handed. If he were to ensure his survival and further service under the sannin, he needed to show up with results. The hideout was destroyed, but regardless, something new needed to be presented.

It was no wild guess that the Akatsuki would be on Orochimaru's hit-list after this had blown over. For now, Kabuto could offer one thing and one thing only, information.

"I am moved by your loyalty."

The statement came out in the distance. Kabuto jogged a few paces and crouched low. While his lenses were broken like this, he couldn't see very well, but his hearing was as sharp as ever. In the darkness of the night, the low light and cover of the shadowed forest was ideal for eavesdropping.

"Make no mistake, your act is noble, I acknowledge that."

He crept closer and slowly placed a gloved hand on the mossy earthen floor. Through the leaves of the bush, he could make out a clearing lit up by the full moon, several black-robed figures standing in a circle formation. One figure seemed to be distorted and blurry, further away from his sight than all the others.

_An Akatsuki meeting? What luck!_ Kabuto smiled briefly and continued to observe the scene and squinted his eyes to get a better view. The broken glass made it very hard to see, with shattered pieces in some places that obscured the view of the scene.

The distorted figure stood for a moment, them slumped to a floor as if his or her's legs had been yanked down. It took a bit of thought but eventually, he was able to distinguish two figures close to each other, explaining the distorted image he got. By then, the definite elder of both doubled over and the younger child seemed to do nothing, frozen.

"You will both die."

_An execution?_ Kabuto blinked and tried to get a better view by staggering forward a few inches. The ringleader raised a sleeved arm with a strange black rod at the very tip. With a drop of the hand, the rod came down swiftly.

Kabuto barely got a second to react as he interpreted the rod shooting in his direction all but too late. He had managed to fall to the side slightly but the sharp end dug into his hip and struck the ground behind him. He let out a sharp cry of pain and bit his lip as a sudden awareness hit him. No longer able to see through the brush, his ears picked up the faint rustling of grass along with the same voice speaking in a low tone even he couldn't decipher. Seconds after, it grew into a commanding one.

"I do not appreciate eavesdropping."

Well, he was defeated. Kabuto knew for a fact he had no chance against the Akatsuki, so letting up was the best thing he could do. He shuddered for a moment and kept wary of how much time he was using up to respond. Slowly and painfully, he lifted an arm and grasped at the black rod before securing his grip. He screwed his eyes shut and prepared himself for the agony as he yanked out the rod in a single pull. Kabuto didn't even attempt to hide his cry and allowed the sound to travel as he angrily chucked the rod away. Immediately, he applied pressure to the open wound and staggered up to meet his enemy.

Sasori sat there for a moment, then registered quickly that he and Deidara had escaped Pein's attention. Only when the strange feeling of something rubbing against his heart case did he finally pull away from Kabuto and look down at his subordinate. Deidara buried his face in the puppeteer's cloak, small hands tightening around a bundle of cloth. His eyes softened at the sight and he leaned down to speak reassuringly to the child.

"It's okay." Sasori whispered. If he spoke any louder, there was no doubt that they might reach Orochimaru's underling.

"Don't go away..." Deidara whined.

"I'm not going anywhere."

"Don't die..."

"What are you talking about? I told you, I'm going to live forever." Sasori patted the boy's head gently, causing the blond to briefly take a wheezing breath and bury himself further into the elder's neck. Buckets of tears drenched his cloak, but the puppeteer had gone through enough of these episodes to have gotten a good dresser full of the uniform to last.

Pein ignored the scene and kept a trained eye on their newest guest. Another wind blew down on the clearing and rustled the trees to add to the white sound. He took a few measured steps towards the shinobi and stopped abruptly. "Konan."

The angel nodded briefly. Without another word, a flurry of white sheets materialized in the air above Kabuto and rained down onto his body. Kabuto could barely react, watching in fear as his arms were forcefully brought to his back and his entire head was encased in paper. Granted without sight, his ears were kept clear to listen in on his next orders.

"Come."

Kabuto staggered forward slowly until he was nearly a foot away from Pein's proud stature. The ginger set his sights on the boy, noting that he could not have been any older than sixteen. Another young ninja, barely a man. He'd seen many like him during his time as the Akatsuki leader. "What is your name?"

A muffled reply came. With a few protests, a sheet peeled from his mouth and allowed him some space to breath. He took a few recovering breaths before replying again. "Kabuto."

"Full name."

The younger took a moment and hesitated by pressing his lips together firmly. "Kabuto Yakushi."

"Hm. Well then Kabuto, would you like to explain why you were eavesdropping?"

The question as no surprise to the prisoner. He resisted an amused smirk at himself and slowly hesitated to answer. At the moment, the ninja was at the mercy of the famed Akatsuki organization. If anything, the odd sensation of several eyes staring at him was almost funny. Kabuto mulled over the question but wasted no more time to answer. "I work for Lord Orochimaru. I wouldn't want to return to him empty-handed now would I?"

Pein lidded his eyes and turned to Sasori expectantly for a brief moment. Sasori in turn blinked for a moment and came to attention.

Kabuto continued. "I'm caught. There's no point in hiding it."

The Akatsuki leader kept his cool gaze onto the boy and made a small look towards the redhead again as he spoke. "Do not worry. You will definitely not be returning empty-handed." Pein turned elsewhere, "Take him away."

Konan nodded and several more papers materialized out of the air. Little struggling came this time, even as Orochimaru's subordinate was wrapped in sheets to appear like a mummy floating in the air. Pein remained indifferent to the surrounding flurry and made his way over to address Sasori who immediately shifted the boy to the ground and stood to face his leader. An acknowledging look passed between the two before Pein spoke. "You know where to find him. From here on, you shall remain to keep tabs on Orochimaru and his activities. I believe Kabuto Yakushi should be able to help you with that."

"I understand." Sasori stated firmly but his expression faltered for a split second.

"Do it tomorrow, and don't forget about the first mission I assigned you." The ginger turned and addressed the rest of the members. "As for the rest of you, I want to see everyone away from here by tomorrow night. Enough has happened and I don't want to have to deal with any curious bystanders. You will kill no one tonight."

* * *

"You shouldn't."

"But he can't see without them."

"Exactly why you shouldn't return them."

"What's the big deal? It's just a pair of glasses."

Sasori made an exasperated sigh. Of course, only someone as young and naive as his subordinate would feel completely safe from harm when the enemy was tied up. Sometimes he wondered if the boy even comprehended what a fully-fledged ninja was capable of. Sometimes he wondered if Deidara's head was filled with enough hot air to lift him off the ground and let him float away, well, it wasn't entirely far-fetched.

Deidara fiddled with a pair of glasses, each with a round lens. Sasori sat at the ready inside of Hiruko and lead both of them passed the thick cover of the trees to meet with an old run-down shack just beginning to rot. It was a rumour around the village nearby that the house was haunted, but that only served to make hiding Kabuto an easier task. No regular person would dare go near it, and such a small settlement would hold little interest for passing shinobi.

"Hold them tight. I don't want him swiping them." Sasori swung Hiruko's tail towards the door and pressed it open. A morning light shone inwards and the young prisoner flinched at the sudden flash of brightness in his eyes.

Kabuto blinked in recognition to his visitors before making a more comforted sigh. "I thought...I thought other people found me. I would have been in trouble."

"You're already in pretty deep." Hiruko muttered and approached the other. Deidara came in from behind the lumbering form of the puppet and took a better look at the Akatsuki's guest, earning a surprised look in return.

Sasori allowed the two to regard each other as he rounded to Kabuto's back and got a look at what Konan used to keep him tied. Other than the usual rope, there were white sheets with seals written on them specifically to prevent an escape jutsu. His hands were cupped into a cocoon of white paper.

"Hello there, I'm Kabuto." The young shinobi made a polite nod at the young boy.

The blond narrowed his eyes skeptically and shifted his feet. He didn't like the way that sounded, too nice if anything. Not that Deidara had witnessed any direct acts of aggression made the previous night, but instinct told him the tone was too cheerful to be honest. He pushed his lower lip forward in defiance and fingered the glasses once more.

The prisoner was quick to notice his spectacles in the boy's possession, and immediately leaned against the newly installed wooden beam. Despite the appearance of this old rotted house, not everything in it was rotting.

"Oh, those are my glasses. Could you give them to me?" Kabuto made a warm smile.

Deidara lifted the glasses then paused.

"Don't." Sasori grumbled abruptly and sent the boy to the wall to stand. The silver-haired shinobi smirked and risked a sly glance over to his captor.

"So, who is this boy?" He spoke in a casual tone, but the puppeteer refused to reply, instead rather busy inside Hiruko. Within the puppet, Sasori unscrewed a jar and fished out a tiny spindly object.

Outside, the sun had begun to move higher into the sky and moved the light streaming through the roof. Kabuto flinched slightly at the bright light in his eye and moved again to a more comfortable position. Hiruko remained still for a moment but soon, an order came out. "Deidara, cut the ropes when I tell you to."

"W-what? Cut the ropes?" The boy stammered in surprise, but the Akatsuki remained firm. Hiruko moved closer to their prisoner.

"Cut them from the front. Use the sharpened knives to make it quick."

The subordinate made a nervous step forward but began to doubt his master's commands by coming to a stop just a few feet away from the appalled prisoner. Sasori expected this, since Deidara had never actually seen the process up close. Even back during the boy's first mission with Orochimaru when he was still in cahoots with the Akatsuki, when it came to the time when the puppeteer would attempt another spy, the lighting and cover of the trees would make observing properly difficult.

"Deidara. Do you think I'm wrong?"

The blond blinked again and quickly shook his head. "N-no."

"Then trust me."

He made a hesitant nod and stepped over the prisoner while withdrawing one of his sharpest kunai. In a knelt position, he held the blade right over the rope and sent a wary stare towards his master. Hiruko nodded and lifted a sleeve to the back of the shinobi's neck.

"Now."

In one single slice, the ropes snapped free. Kabuto wasted no time to exploit his newly found freedom and quickly lunged towards the younger, hand charged with a sharp concentration of chakra. Deidara tried to back off but remained within the strike distance. His eyes widened in momentary fear before Kabuto dropped his grin and his face went blank. In slump, the older fell on top of the child motionlessly. Deidara's heart continued to hammer but the realization donned on him that no consciousness remained.

He took a sharp breath and shifted from underneath the body to sit up. The boy noticed as a thin stream of blood trickled from a spot on Kabuto's neck. The small needle hole quickly healed up and the blood stopped flowing, now nothing but a tiny scar.

Deidara slowly stood up. "What happened?"

Sasori didn't answer and allowed the young terrorist to see for himself. It took a few seconds but soon enough, Kabuto's fingers twitched and grasped the floor. Some grunts of confusion emitted from him and soon enough, he recovered from being sprawled on the floor to sit. He made a quick gaze around the room and settled his eyes on the equally puzzled blond who began to pace away. Kabuto didn't have time to question things as a searing pain shot up from the back of his head and he grasped for it, clawing at his hair.

"So you're finally awake?"

Kabuto blinked and whirled around to meet Hiruko's gaze. He fumbled his words and tried to get a grasp of what happened, but nothing seemed to come to light. He didn't know why, but he felt scared of this man, and the young boy in the room was unfamiliar to him. Kabuto continued to make raspy breaths, unable to speak.

Sasori didn't question the reaction. "Your punishment is over. In time, you will resume your position under Orochimaru, but I want to give you a new order this time."

The shinobi considered answering but found himself unable to understand what the old man was talking about. He strained to remember, staring at the floor as he did so until finally something seemed to seep into his brain. Memories, but strange ones that felt familiar. In his mind, he could see a pale-faced man with long dark hair sitting before him in large room filled with several giant capsules. More images popped up depicting torch-lit winding hallways and perhaps his most vivid early memory, a meeting with this same old man. A final scene came to place where he stood before the Akatsuki leader but the vision left as soon as the papers covered his face. The rest of the memory was little more than feeling, as he could not see beyond the mask of sheets.

Kabuto stared at the ground, then lifted his gaze up to the puppeteer. "When will that be?"

"Tonight. Everyone is leaving tonight. However, I would like to make my instructions more clear meanwhile. I will trust that you don't fail to warn us this time."

Deidara watched their prisoner come to a stand and nod. "Yes, Lord Sasori."

* * *

"Ah, thank you." Kabuto received his glasses from the boy and put them on, only to raise his eyebrows at the blurry vision and cracked lenses. The entire lens was decorated in finger prints, but he decided not to mention them.

He gazed down the boy just a couple of heads shorter than himself. The blond didn't take the gesture kindly and narrowed his eye suspiciously before turning to sprint back over to Sasori's side.

Kabuto cocked his head slightly and continued to follow the puppeteer down the path. "Lord Sasori?"

The redhead grunted.

"Who's the kid?"

"Just like you, an underling of mine. He's a higher rank though so you're not exactly the same." Sasori explained briefly. Deidara glanced back at the other boy who's gaze quickly dropped to the floor beneath his feet.

"Oh."

Another few minutes passed in silence, nothing but the sounds of morning birds who have returned and some fauna popping up again in the morning. The sun began to rise up to the ten O'clock mark, though slightly late due to the changing season. Summer was coming to its end, just a few weeks away from the beginning of September and the arrival of fall.

"Hello there, I'm Kabuto."

Deidara shivered at the familiar words and turned to meet the other's eyes. They were more honest this time, not a single sign of a lie hidden within them. When he was younger, it was always easier to tell the feelings of another person, but as the blond grew and his mind was stuffed with more materialistic information, that ability began to fade. Deidara had yet to lose this ability though, since it still served some purpose to his survival.

"What's your name?" Kabuto asked kindly.

The boy frowned and mumbled. "Deidara."

Kabuto gazed at the child's headband, noting the trademark slash across the symbol that every rogue who still wore the piece had. "You're from Iwagakure. How old are you?"

Deidara held off his answer and made sure that Sasori wasn't barring the conversation. Hiruko remained contempt, and no gestures were given to suggest it. "Eleven."

"I'm fourteen. I guess we're both kids."

Deidara scoffed and turned the other cheek. It didn't feel right to be speaking so casually with someone he considered lower than himself. No, he wouldn't allow it. This was as far as their talk would go.

Kabuto caught his drift and let the conversation die. Of course, why would anyone want to speak with a failure like he was? Just because he failed to warn the organization of the coming defection of Orochimaru, of course, he had no right to introduce himself to anyone. Perhaps if he wasn't so scared to speak to Sasori, then his punishment would have been avoided.

Morning birds continued to chirp loudly, but their song had begun to stutter to a halt as mid-day arrived. It wasn't so often that he got to enjoy the sounds of the forest, only the sounds of the footfalls of those who so often spied on him.

* * *

**A/N: Sorry about the late update! I've been more tired than usual lately. I wanted this chapter to be longer but it became hard to write it out from here without presenting another chapter. Hope you guys enjoy! I haven't been able to get the energy to edit this one. I'm a bit tired. Let me sleep.**

**Please review if you'd like! Nice to meet ya!**


	40. C2

**C2**

__(Naruto Shippuden OST 2 Track 13 - Impregnable)__

__KLANG__

Sparks exploded from the impact as both blades flew off of each other. Deidara stood his ground and clenched his teeth as he attempted to prevent himself from skidding backwards. A black robe flitted by his vision and distracted him as a foot wheeled around and sent him shooting in the opposite direction. An explosion of dust erupted from the trees in the distance and for a moment, Itachi wondered if he was overestimating Deidara's capabilities and therefore, going to hard on the younger.

From the dust emerged a white bird with said boy on its back, knelt and growling at him. Deidara stood on the bird and held his balance expertly as the clay sculpture began to circle many meters above Itachi. His hands spit up some clay and the boy kneaded it quickly. Following that, he repeated the action.

_What's he doing up there?_ Itachi knew well that the battle Deidara proposed had barred off any of his 'tricks', but it did not forbid the Sharingan from use completely. Maybe he was a bit reckless to try and use it for something so petty, but no good fortune would come of Sasori's wrath if he found out that Deidara had been fatally injured during the fight. Itachi knew little of the puppeteer himself, but stories he's heard from a late-night chat with Kisame had got him thinking.

His irises swirled into a crimson red and his vision advanced as the world cleared. Details like movement and colour became amplified to the point where to an inexperienced user, the sensation of so much information being processed would have been overwhelming. Like this, chakra systems were slightly visible to the eyes, and Itachi could spy a large collection of it around Deidara's chest, though not quite part of his body.

Suddenly, Deidara spread his arms wide and the large collection of chakra spread out as well, seemingly sprinkling through the air. It took a while, but soon enough, Itachi had realized what those were.

Several clay birds plunged into the air and dropped like a rain of white needles. The blond held an eager grin on his face, watching as his creations showered the land. It would hard to avoid these ones, even he did manage to dodge them all, they were no mine-field bombs, so once they hit the ground, it was a simple game of hawk and mouse. Hopefully this won't kill you. Deidara dropped his arms and swooped in after them, aiming to descend a few meters down to witness his work up close. Tobi was always quick on his feet, and so each time they played their game to let the hours pass, the level would increase each time. Over the years, their game had become quite dangerous, as Tobi would use more ninjaesque techniques to escape Deidara's bombs. By now, the eleven-year old was experienced in this game, and he wasn't about to let Itachi beat him in it.

"So, how are you going to weasel your way out of this one? Itachi!" Deidara barked out proudly.

Itachi made no reply and instead weaved through hand seals before spewing out a ball of fire into the air. The roaring flames engulfed the clay birds from above, no doubt drying out all of the moisture inside until the bird cracked and crumbled into ash. Deidara made a 'tch' and winded his larger bird back to hover in the air and just barely escape the fire.

He eyed a small bird and had it flip its wings out wide just before it hit the ground. In a controlled steering movement, every sculpture that didn't get consumed by the flames had their wings spread and veered towards Itachi. Deidara kept a hand seal up and focused to keep the thirty birds remaining in his control. The movements were simple, fold out the wings and to simplify things, let them glide. Regardless, controlling more than ten sculptures had already been a bit of struggle. Deidara rarely got the time to actually practice this technique, but he'd do almost anything at this point to prove to Itachi he was more than just a block in the road.

"_Katsu_!"

The birds kept flying and collided in the middle as Itachi quickly bounded out of the way. A mess of clay wings and bodies broke and fell to pieces on the ground, unsuccessful. Deidara's eyes widened and nearly slapped himself. How could he have forgotten the duds? Deidara snapped out of his stupor and kept his eye trained on Itachi as he darted around the field. Immediately, the blond tried to reel his bird back into the sky but found the task difficult as several kunai's shot up in the air around him.

The bird began to swerve and twist, desperately dodging the projectiles. Suddenly, the bird dipped and caused the boy to tumble over. Deidara sensed something cling to the bottom f the bird and crawled to the side to take a look. Itachi swung with one arm gripped around the sculpture's leg and began to swing himself so he could attach his feet to the giant stomach. Deidara growled and shouted, "You think you can get me up here?! Wrong choice Uchiha!"

Itachi disregarded Deidara's words and simply took it as a bluff. With one more swing, he finally pressed his shoes against the falcon's stomach but witnessed nearly too late as the young bomber held his hand up in a seal.

"_Katsu_!"

_BOOM_

Nearby in the shadow of the line of trees, Kabuto watched with wide eyes while Sasori had barely reacted. Above them, a large explosion blasted into the air and took both children with it. The silver-haired shinobi fixed his glasses and attempted to get a better view even with his broken lenses.

"That...that kid just killed himself." Kabuto breathed.

Sasori observed the fight from below. Across the field, Kisame also kept watch, Samehada at the ready if something serious were to befall the two. It was a simple brawl between the two that Deidara proposed the moment he set his eyes on Itachi and seethed. Right then and there, the blond had been eager to show the raven his true power, though warned against using genjutsu to see it to its full effect. Though had the puppeteer been able to use genjutsu and was in Itachi's place, he would have objected to it, he found the fact that the youngest Akatsuki accepted even harder to believe.

A ball of dust fell from the cloud and quickly flew away to reveal Deidara plunging into the sky, no bird to support him. The boy flipped through the air and managed a perfect land while the second form emerged in the opposite side of the cloud. Deidara made a triumphant expression to see some smoke waft off of the Uchiha's collar, indicating it was at least a close call.

Itachi staggered slightly and caught his breath, heart hammering and ears ringing at the same time. He hadn't expected such a young boy to pull off such a life-threatening stunt without a second thought.

_As usual. That kid makes me worry sometimes._ Sasori begrudgingly thought and dragged an eye over to his new spy. Even if the fourteen-year old was under his control now, there was still work needed to be done. Kabuto had little to substance a good character if he had no memories to act upon. Sasori had no intention of giving him any of those memories, hoping instead that the power of suggestion would urge the boy to conjure up some fake ones on his own to complete his memory.

Deidara forced himself to keep up the smirk. In all actuality, he felt humiliated by his failure to detonate the flock of birds, but it was over at least. His danna had been right about his guess, too many to control and he'd lose the ability to activate the chakra within altogether. He'd have to avoid from doing that for this battle. Regardless, he hated the way that Itachi looked at him. Without any emotion, such disregard for his talents was ignorance. Deidara hated ignorance.

The blond adjusted his stance and put his hands together to mold something larger. The corners of his lips curled into a wider smile and his eye widened._ I was going to save this for something more desperate, but it'll show him, I'll open his eyes more than that sharingan will ever_. He twisted his wrist dropped the little creation onto the ground. Deidara made a grunt with the seal and the smalls sculpture quickly exploded into a massive cloud larger than anything he's done before. Deidara made an eager glance towards all who observed the battle. This was ultimate creation for now, the best thing he's achieved thus far. Perhaps then would the Akatsuki see how advanced he had become, how much he had grown from that tiny little brat in the beginning who needed to be held and cradled like a baby. Deidara believed he was more than that.

Sasori blinked and actually tilted Hiruko's head upwards towards the giant cloud that practically consumed the blond in its sheer mass, many times the height of the eleven-year old; probably reaching about ten meters in the air. A large gust of wind blasted from the spot and two large flat wings emerged and quickly moved into a downwards stroke to disperse the cloud.

From it, a giant long neck rushed into the air and it opened it wide mouth. A long segmented tail winded upwards and fell to the floor, causing a the earth to rumble slightly against its weight. The dragon lowered its head and dropped it lazily onto the ground next to the beaming child.

Deidara jumped his gaze over to his danna as the looming shadow of the colossal sculpture towered in the air, even making the likes of Kisame feel a bit small. With a wide smile, he waved his arms in the air to get his attention ecstatically. "You see it danna?" Deidara shouted and clambered clumsily onto the dragon's forehead. The sculpture nodded and knocked its rider into place between forward facing horns. The blond stood up and marvelled at his newest creation. "What do you think?"

"You've really outdone yourself this time." Sasori raised his voice and swung Hiruko's head from side to side. Kabuto gazed up in pure awe at the gigantic creature, briefly removing his glasses to get a somewhat better idea of the sheer scale.

A flock of birds screeched loudly as the exited the forest to escape from the gigantic bomb along with several other fauna. Deer sprinted in pure terror while the squirrels skidded as fast they could.

The dragon raised its wings and blotted out the sun to cast a long dark shadow over the forest. Kisame looked on in amazement, having never known the squirt to be capable of anything of such scale. He wasn't sure anymore if this battle was a good idea if the brat decided that he was willing to go to such lengths to defeat Itachi or was just plain reckless in his display. Kisame had no real idea if this giant dragon was meant to explode, but considering the proportion of the explosion created Deidara's smaller bombs, this would be something even the shark may not be able to contain without going all out. He turned to his partner quickly and shouted. "Itachi, I think this might be a bit big for you take on!"

The Uchiha shook his head stiffly, eyes trained on the gigantic dragon. He didn't need help. He was fine. He didn't need it.

Deidara had quickly put a hand on his hip proudly and addressed the other child. "I call it C2! Everyone here is the first to see it! You're lucky Itachi." He paused and continued. "It's better than any summoning animal! It can't feel pain and it won't be too much to control!"

With a single flap its might wings, a blast of wind hit the surrounding forest like a storm. The dragon rose into the air, limbs dangling and tail slowly uncurling from the ground as it gained height. Deidara willed his creation into the sky, letting the dragon flap until he was able to find a suitable air current to ride. The giant white dragon spread its wings out wide, spanning the entire clearing as it glided on the air pocket. Deidara watched as the sculpture's shadow grew on the floor, dwarfing Itachi hundreds of time his size.

"What are you going to do now Itachi?" Deidara let his near maniac expression soften slightly and he continued to ramble on loudly. "Remember what I told you? 'You messed with the wrong kid'? Maybe you should just give up!"

Zetsu observed from a nearby tree, having dodged the blast of air and easily managed to find a good seat away from the detection of others. White Zetsu made a confident smile. "_He's developing quickly, good. **But is it the fruits of Sasori's training? **Doesn't matter, it's a dragon isn't it_?"

Itachi stood in contemplation beneath the creature's shadow, eyes darting from the ground to the sky to approximate it's total height. Deidara didn't wait for the older boy to figure out a plan before he made his signature hand seal. The last bead of clay on the dragon's tail was sucked into the rest of the tail with a loud vacuum sound. The dragon reared its head, mouth pried open as it regurgitated a large winged gecko.

_Creating sculpture's without molding them?_ Sasori found himself rather absorbed into the battle now, curious to see the extent of his subordinate's progress. Never before had he ever really paid attention to the boy while he was out training on his own, so the live demonstration of the results had yet to fail his expectations. If anything, the development from the C1 to the C2 had exceeded them, and at the mere age of eleven. _Alright, I'll pay attention this time brat._

Deidara sneered. "I don't use this often, so it's just a test for now."

The winged gecko wriggled out of the dragon's throat. Like an arrow, the pointed snout took aim on its target before launching like a rocket. Itachi was quick to move from his spot but to his surprise, the missile spread its wings out and caught the air to swerve in his direction. The horse-sized sculpture gained on him. Itachi ran in an erratic path, zig-zags, and loops in the hopes of losing it but the winged-gecko was far too mobile.

_You'll get tired soon_. Deidara waited patiently in the sky, single blue eye wide with anticipation. Even as Itachi darted around the field like a mouse, as long as the boy had his eye on him, his bombs would always hit their target. It had become much harder to miss his opponents once Deidara learned how to puppeteer his bombs and move them at his will. Homing missile's needed no guidance, they simply look for the target chakra and follow it.

Itachi ran full-sprint, quickly conjuring up an idea on the spot. Dragging his feet across the ground in a skid, the Uchiha weaved his hands into a different selection of seals.

"_Water style: Water bomb jutsu_." Itachi's inhaled a massive breath and spewed out a torrent of water. No fireball of any size would successfully stop this thing. If flight wasn't an option, than all there was left was to fight.

"HAH! Nice try!" Deidara barked.

The winged gecko flipped and flew upside-down to avoid the heavy stream of water. Itachi moved to retreat but the jutsu had yet to finish, leaving him open to the swift bomb.

_BOOM_

Deidara made a triumphant expression. There were several advantages the C2, though it did use up nearly a quarter of his chakra to use it casually, the blond knew well what kind of expense he would pay for using it to its full extent. During his practice, he tended to make a short tail, finding no need for so much more clay to be used. Regardless, Itachi was a worthy opponent. Deidara had never felt the joy of defeating anyone with it yet, so to lay his mark in the Akatsuki by cornering one of their members would definitely be a big achievement on his end. This time, just for this case, the tail was made many times longer than it usually was. From the usual five or six segments came to fifteen.

Kisame shot up. The explosion was much larger than he expected in proportion to the sculpture. Samehada could sense, it the large reserves of chakra being stored up and mixed into the dragon's body. Though the dragon itself had a fairly dilute mix of chakra, the sculpture it regurgitated was highly concentrated with it, what would have been a delicious meal for the sword.

Hiruko stepped forward but halted. The results were already soaring above his expectations and for a moment, he doubted Itachi's abilities to face Deidara. What stopped him was the idea that Itachi was a fully-fledged member of the organization. Surely Pein couldn't have chosen him only to have him be beaten up by one of their underlings. Sure, extraordinary abilities within the Akatsuki subordinates weren't unusual, but that's what made them associated with the group. Those who actually wore the cloaks were highly recognized as prized shinobi, with a set of skills far beyond the general shinobi, even the elite. Itachi accepted this battle, so he would die to it if he proved unable to survive Deidara's attacks. The tables were turned. From Deidara being kicked around like a dog to this. The scope of the battle had gone beyond anything Sasori expected of mere children.

Screeching emitted from the blast cloud and several crows dispersed. Deidara staggered in shock, realizing too late that Itachi had been able to reach the dragon's dangling tail and climb his way up. Deidara whirled around to meet his opponent, now both of them riding the sculpture's back just a few meters away.

"That was impressive." Itachi nodded and lowered into a charge.

The monotone voice of a ninja beyond his years sparked a rage within Deidara, who quickly stepped back. Suddenly, the dragon's neck swung and the sculpture's boxy head fell flat on its back upside-down, jaws open with a much larger winged pig loaded in its mouth between the two. Itachi didn't stop running, moving to curve away from the head. As before, the sculpture followed his movement and with a prompt command, it launched and missed Itachi.

Itachi ran onto the wind of the dragon and began to slow down. Deidara took no thought into it and simply assumed the Uchiha had taken a wrong turn and ended up on a dead end. Soon enough, the winged-pig made a U-turn and flew straight for Itachi who jumped off of the ledge. Deidara's face fell as the pig collided straight into the dragon's wing, it's sheer bulk serving to tear a hole in the thin layer of clay that acted as webbing.

The dragon tumbled in the air, wings flapping furiously as it slowly tipped over and the wind current blew harshly into its undamaged wing. It made one last bellow before it was flipped over, the sound liken to a whale.

Deidara panicked as the world fell around him. The back of the dragon flipped on its side and it wasn't long before there was no doubt, if he didn't get out of here quickly, he'd be caught dead centre of the explosion. No clay was left in his pouches, but the dragon would supply all of the clay he needed. Time was of the essence, and Deidara wasted none of it by quickly tearing a chunk off of the C2 and chewing it up hastily.

_DOOM_

The dragon let out a final bellow as its back hit the forest below, back arched and stomach bloated and rising with the increased pressure before finally tearing into an explosion. The blast uprooted trees and sent a massive shock wave throughout the area. The sound was so loud and piercing that it shook the sky, even the dust cloud that resulted from the explosion were pushed out farther as the shock wave blew them higher into the atmosphere.

Itachi's fell into a thick cover of trees back first, but no soft covering of leaves prepared him for the shock wave. One moment, the canopy was rising above him and the next, a masisve gust of wind had nearly tore up the tree he had landed on.

"_That damn brat_!" Sasori cursed. Hiruko ran forward, unaffected by the blast wave. Before he could move any further, a something large and white shot past his vision, colliding into the ground behind.

A small body tumbled farther from the now deformed clay creature, leaving a trail of dust in his path. Deidara moaned in pain as he laid on the floor for a few seconds, but managed to slowly lift himself. He struggled with both arms to push him off the ground, finally able to open his eyes only to see the face of Hiruko above him. His black mask flitted and swung. A sharp sound pierced his ears, but alas, Deidara could not hear a thing of what the puppeteer was saying to him. He stared at Sasori for a full minute, mind still numb at attempting to decipher the words that were being spoken.

"Don't tell me you've gone deaf!" Sasori scolded harshly, but his words barely reached the boy.

Deidara blinked and quickly shook himself out of the daze. Whatever concern Sasori had was immediately ignored as the boy spun on the spot gander at the damage. Several dog-sized clay pieces lay scattered throughout the clearing. Many of them were lumped onto the ground with clear drag marks left in their wake, a few dangled from the tree branches. Deidara opened his mouth briefly but paused to look about the area. The expression of surprise seemed to stiffen into one of frustration as he shot up and turned to Sasori.

"Where's Itachi?" Deidara demanded rudely, but Sasori could tell by his tone that he was anything but concerned for the Uchiha's well-being.

_Oh, so I guess worrying isn't important? _The puppeteer frowned. "You think I know?"

Deidara sent a shrewd look towards his master and clenched his teeth to hold in his anger. Bemused, the puppeteer prepared to continue his reprimand for reckless behaviour but found himself interrupted when two others emerged from the trees. Deidara whipped his attention around to Itachi and scowled.

Itachi turned a blind eye to the glare and started stiffly, "That's the end of it."

"No it's not!" Deidara snarled. "I'm still standing!"

"But we're out of time." Kisame cut in. "I'd like a get a head start in leaving. I hear the ruckus Orochimaru caused is gaining the attention."

"But-!"

"He's right. We have to get going." Sasori silenced his subordinate with a threatening glance and turned back to the other two. "We'll be going south. What about you two?"

"We got assigned an A-rank mission in the Land of Frost."

Hiruko nodded and gazed over at Itachi who seemed to falter under his gaze. The puppeteer sized up the youth and noticed something gleaming on his finger. Deidara followed his danna's gaze and also noticed the tiny trinket with surprise.

"A real member now eh?" Sasori commented.

Itachi lifted his right arm, sleeve slipping over his hand to reveal a dragon's ring, a ring of Seiryuu. The smooth surface of the rounded circle was painted a scarlet red with a black 朱. The very sight of caused the blond to quiver on the spot with wide eyes. He remembered plainly how he first ring worn by Sasori and his former partner. It seemed like a feminine accessory at first, trivial. However, as time went on, he learned the importance of such rings. On days when the puppeteer was absent and the only one keeping him company was the weary presence of Tobi, Deidara remembered him explaining the importance of the rings. Each member of the Akatsuki had to wear them, and yet not everyone who became recruited possessed one. Only those who had proved themselves has valuable would be granted with the dragon's finger, how each and every one of the rings was irreplaceable. They granted no only security in the organization but status and a proper rank. Deidara admired them for a while. Sasori had one, so no doubt was he recognized as a member of merit. Now however, the sight of it only served to make his stomach drop and churn, a strange feeling of being degraded, inferior.

"Yes. I got it this morning." Itachi stuttered slightly but managed a fairly smooth tone. "Leader told me it was because I showed skill when we fought Orochimaru."

"Then you know not to lose it, no matter what."

The slight fondness in Sasori's voice stirred a heated feeling in the tight-lipped eleven-year old. Perhaps it only sounded like a word of advice to others, but often being the subject of the puppeteer's concerns had trained him to know what counted as acknowledgement and what didn't. Deidara resumed his glare but remained chained back by the threatening look he received earlier.

Sasori turned slightly. "The Akatsuki will be expecting more of you now. You'd better not disappoint, Itachi, if you want to go far in the organization."

_"That's my boy. You'll go far in the ANBU ranks, there's no question about it."_

The Uchiha lowered his gaze briefly. "Yes, sir."

A brow was raised by both other Akatsuki at the response. Such compliance was unheard of in the competent members, but it was shortly dismissed as a sort of respect for the older age of the puppeteer. Deidara sensed the discomfort and his feelings rested for a second. Itachi was a little strange, good enough for him.

"Sir?" Deidara sneered. "You're the same rank as Sasori no danna."

"He's older than me."

"Older!" The blond spat. "Age doesn't matter here!" The blond turned his frown into a knowing smile. "Baby or old man, it's all the same. Death doesn't care how old you are, what only matters is if you can fight it!"

"That's enough, brat." Sasori shoved the little boy roughly to silence him. "It's time to go."

The shark snickered but agreed by turning his back on the other Akatsuki. "Us too. Come on Itachi. Thanks for paying dinner Sasori."

Hiruko paused on the spot and Deidara froze. The puppeteer allowed a pregnant silence to follow as he slowly peered over at the other two while his subordinate sweated buckets and began to make gestures behind his back to communicate with the shark.

"Dinner?"

Kisame blinked. "Yeah. You don't eat though so Deidara payed for you." He glanced over at the blond. "Right Deidara?"

The bomber gulped and tugged at the collar of his kimono jacket with a forced smile. "Eh, yeah...sort of."

Deidara's gaze warily moved down towards his mentor, who had remained still on the spot. Hiruko's eyes did not jolt occasionally with the slight falter of the chakra strings, indicating that the puppet was not being controlled at all. Instead, a different, more normal grumbling tone emitted from the shell.

"My brat doesn't have any money. I keep it all. I also don't remember paying for any 'dinner'."

Kisame blinked twice. "Oh?" He turned to address his far younger partner. "You remember right Itachi?"

Itachi nodded.

_Damn you Itachi!_ Deidara sweated and took a careful step back.

The shadows on Hiruko's face intensified, a blackness coming over his expression so dark even the blond boy had a reason to fear it. Not only him, the others began to sense the tension and soon enough, the other Akatsuki had briefly waved their goodbye's and disappeared from the scene.

"_Deidara...what did you do_?"

"L-look, I just wanted some B-bakudan okay?..."

* * *

It took a bit of effort but soon enough, the artist duo were on their way. Past the clearing, they curved around the main village to avoid detection as best as possible. It was still within the morning hours, though the summer sun had already set high in the sky. Deidara couldn't help but sulk to himself about how quickly Itachi had gained recognition among the others, when it took himself three years to even get involved.

_He took on my C2 without a problem. _Deidara grumbled as both of them tread back on the main path. Beyond them, a field of rice paddies stretched out into the near horizon. The heavy creak of the bamboo boards below them shifted as Hiruko mounted the bridge and began their way across the field. Mountains in the distance were blanketed in a thicket, a rise in the land abruptly ended the rice paddies and started a slow growth of trees a little further away. Hiruko slipped out a rice hat and wore it over the puppet's head.

Deidara noticed as a third set of footfalls joined them and the creaking of the old bamboo bridge intensified. The blond warily glanced over his shoulder, eyes narrowing at the sight of Kabuto following, a slightly solemn expression on his face.

A few minutes in and the song of birds had calmed the child slightly. Though he couldn't shake the paranoid feeling with Kabuto nearby, the blond managed a question.

"Where to now?"

"Tenchi bridge. It should be a week-long trip."

Deidara nodded, then turned to spare another wary glance at their tag-along. "Why is he coming?"

Sasori delayed his answer to as several birds retreated in their presence. The boy took a moment to gaze up at the several swallows zooming in the air around them in a burst of speed before folding their wings in a brief but speedy drop only to catch themselves with the quick spread of their feathers. Many of them seemed to float over the water's surface, unhindered by the several wooden posts sticking out the field.

"I need to get my spy to work before anything else. Leader's orders. After that, we'll get on with the mission I was already assigned."

"What's the mission?"

"A massacre happened a few months ago in a village. It had been a hidden ninja village for much of its history but as of recently, they've decided to back down from battle and become a peaceful tourist attraction. Looks like not everyone was happy with the arrangement."

"Why do you think it happened?"

Sasori shrugged inside the puppet, but continued to educate the younger. "Yugakure as it was previously called. When a village does this, the shinobi clans usually move on to find other hidden village's who might consider taking them in their own military. It's part of a shinobi's work, they need someone to keep them busy or the clan falls apart. Someone with pride probably got upset and decided the village was better off destroyed."

"So what? We go in and help them do it?"

"The opposite. The Akatsuki were hired to investigate and take down whoever is responsible. I'll explain more once my spy has begun his job."

Deidara agreed again and for another few minutes, the three continued to tread along the winding bamboo bridge. Some small houses were familiar in the distance, either tool-sheds or homes to people that couldn't afford a one in the village. The eleven-year old allowed his mind to wander, but found that with the recent incident, the shock waves still hit him. He couldn't keep his mind away from the thought of Orochimaru. He hadn't known the snake for very long, really only for one mission and a weeks-worth of days. Orochimaru had been intimidating and scary, even a struggle for the likes of the Akatsuki together to take down. However, it was his pursuit, his motivation that made the child wonder.

"Why did he want the Sharingan?"

Sasori grunted.

"Orochimaru." Deidara clarified.

Hiruko wasted no time to ponder the question and answered. "The Sharingan is an extremely powerful dojutsu, inherited in the blood of the Uchiha clan. Many who have witnessed its power either fear it or attempt to gain it. Orochimaru was the latter. I'm pretty you sure you already know that yourself."

"All it does is make illusions isn't it?" The boy frowned. "Orochimaru is strong enough. Why does he want something like that?" Deidara lifted a hand and gazed at his own palm mouths. As if on request, the lips moved and its tongue lolled out lazily. "Why not my jutsu?"

"Trust me, you don't want that." Sasori muttered quickly. "The sharingan is more than just an illusion. It's first stage has nothing to do with genjutsu after all."

"First stage?"

"In short, the sharingan is capable of much more than illusions. The jutsu grants its user the ability to have higher clarity of perception, the ability to see chakra, to copy movements. To a greater extent, if the user has the physical ability to do so, they could copy entire jutsu's, read lips, see fast moving attacks, or even to the extent of which Itachi has achieved, the ability to summon black fire that never ceases to burn until the body is nothing more than ash." Sasori paused for a moment and gauged his subordinate's reaction to the mention. As expected, the boy scowled at the very name and the redhead went on. "Anyone with such a jutsu has limitless potential. I'd imagine Orochimaru is quite frustrated."

Deidara narrowed an eye. "What do you mean?"

"Orochimaru isn't dead." Sasori heard the words himself and felt slightly isolated by his own sentence. Only a few times in his life had he ever been unsure about something, but by now, the puppeteer felt less uncomfortable revealing vulnerability to the young child. "It's a hunch, but I'd place on my bets on him living. My partner wouldn't die just like that, that's not how he is."

The child sighed. "I guess Aoda's not coming around anymore."

"You still remember Aoda?"

"Un." Deidara nodded slowly. "I still remember when you told me about the summoning animals! That's why I made C2 Dragon! You talked about your puppets being better than summoning animals, so I made C2 Dragon to be better than both animals and puppets! Not only that but it's a dragon so it's cooler!"

Sasori stifled a laugh. "Better than my puppets huh? You want to bet brat?"

"Yeah!" The blond's happiness seemed to rub off of the puppeteer a bit, as Sasori found himself smiling unintentionally.

"Sorry to keep it a secret from you danna, but I wanted to surprise you!" Deidara threw his arms up as if he thrown confetti into the air. "It's the best art I got right now, though it could be better."

"Then make it better." Sasori received a strange look from the child as he continued. "I remember when you were shorter. You made a bug for me back in that first inn. From a bug to a dragon, I can only imagine what else you can do."

The encouragement sparked a twinkle in the child's eye. Deidara seemed to swell with pride and immediately began to ramble on about his newest creation. Sasori tuned out of much of the talk but still found the cheerful tone to be relaxing, like a background music he could listen to. For every question the little boy posed, he simply nodded the puppets head and resumed leading them across the rice patty field.

Sometimes he wondered what it would be like if he didn't take in Deidara. If he never took notice of the tiny body fall in the distance after emerging from the low canopy of trees. If he simply denied himself and passed by without another thought. Sasori sometimes wondered what life would have been like. Perhaps him and Pein wouldn't have been fighting. Him and Konan would have been on neutral terms and Itachi would never have approached Sasori for any assistance at all. Itachi would have simply integrated into the Akatsuki, without a word, without a complaint. Itachi would not have survived his inevitable encounter with Orochimaru without Deidara having forgotten his change. Another member lost, MIA(Missing in Action). That ring would have been worn by someone else.

Then again, it would have been true of anyone else wouldn't it?

Sasori pushed the thought to the back of his mind. It didn't matter now, the only thing that mattered was that it was over. Orochimaru no longer plotted within the organization and no longer was an invisible threat. The Akatsuki could handle anything, no question about it.

Or...would it?

* * *

_"Not going to tell me? Oh well, or is it, you don't have any plans at all? A bit of a disappointment. Weren't you going to live forever? If so, you'll definitely outlive the Akatsuki."_

* * *

_Someday, this organization will fall, wither into the ground._ Sasori tried to shroud the thought but couldn't stop himself from wondering. _Then I will be left with Deidara. Pein will fall somehow and the Akatsuki will either fade into nothing or abruptly disband. It'll be harder to take care of the brat without the others._

"Until the end." Sasori mumbled mindlessly.

* * *

**A/N: Long chapter this time(about 2,000 words over than the usual) but the fight scene was more detailed than I expected. Regardless, I think I'm closing on the main theme of the fanfiction and I'll definitely get on a roll with it once we get there. Clay is vulnerable to a lot of things really. Fire will make it crumble(or explode in my experience with the furnace...) and water will dissolve it(slightly). Sometimes I wonder about how I'm going to explain the clay fish...**

**Thanks for reading! It's a long chapter so I hope to get some good feedback! Nice to meet ya!**


	41. Kid

**Kid**

__(Naruto Shippuden Movie 2 OST Track 7 - Afterglow)__

"You're too hasty." Kisame sighed.

Snow piled outside of the door to the hideout. Smoke wafted off of the unlit candle in the corner, the light bulb that hung over the ceiling had been shattered like an egg and left to swing aimlessly on its cord. A darkness fell over the small room with creaky wooden floors and a door that had been burst open so violently that the hinges broke. Blood splattered across the floor, indicating a violent struggle as many bodies lay slashed to the ground. Mangled bodies twisted in awkward positions with horrid expressions of the few who's faces could be identified. In the middle, Itachi stood with a blank expression, a stolen katana in hand dripped with access amounts of the crimson liquid.

He opened his mouth and moved his lips for a few moments faintly, as if testing his ability to speak. "No...you just came too late."

Kisame sighed and leaned Samehada against the door post. "I already told you: if you're going to have fun, tell me so I can join in. Even then, I'm not liking that you're running off on your own like this. It's barely any fun at all to find you missing so often."

Itachi shifted his feet on floor, then sauntered over to the nearest body before planting the sword firmly into the man's back. He breathed again and observed a cloud of mist spew from his lips, like the faint smoke of a fireball. "I'm just getting the mission done. I used to be in the ANBU you know."

The shark remained silent and simply walked over to the younger boy. He placed a hand on his shoulder and waited until onyx eyes were upturned towards him to speak. "ANBU or not, it's an elder's responsibility to keep an eye on those who are younger. We're not fish, so it's something I have to do."

"But we're..." Itachi withheld the word he wanted to say and took a sharp breath before averting his eyes. "No. I don't need help. If you don't like it, do something else."

Itachi slapped away Kisame's hand and shoved off to further explore the room. He stopped at the long hallway into the mountain but stopped short of the intense darkness that awaited him. His body shook, but not with fear. He didn't know why but he couldn't think straight, his knees going weak as something began to well up inside of his chest. The small cabin seemed to close in around him and the walls slowly slipping closer.

"You're angry."

"I'm not angry." Itachi stated flatly.

Kisame grinned. "That only makes it even more obvious. Kids don't lie very well."

"We're not children anymore." Itachi pressed his lips together and stared at the floor. No one else was in this hideout, he could tell. But why did he stand here then? To appear busy? Like he was doing something purposeful?

A low thump emitted from the stairs at the steps. Itachi blinked and turned to find Kisame comfortably sitting and leaning against the door post. The soft light of the day outside gave a soft glow around the man's silhouette. "Well, we are partners. For now, the only one's we have are each other, so..."

Itachi furrowed his eyebrows. "You want me to talk to you?"

The shark shrugged. "Why not? The mission's over and we have a lot of spare time before Leader's going to start counting down. Tell me a story or two, I don't mind."

The Uchiha pondered the offer for a moment. Show vulnerability like that? No way, he'd shown far too much during the last fiasco. His left eye still ached with slight pain whenever a bright light flashed by his vision. Admitting the existence of his brother to Deidara, barraging Sasori with questions, it was all too much, too much vulnerability. Itachi nearly scowled at the thought. This was not going as he had planned, it was never supposed to be this way. How could only realize it a week ago? There was too much kindness, the casual air was nearly sickening but Itachi had not realized until then? When the sharp black rod was raised over the two he knew of most in the Akatsuki? It should have been obvious but alas, it was tougher than he has anticipated. Even in his position, he could do nothing more than cast his eyes over that late-night scene with a sewed mouth and chained limbs. There was no more freedom beyond the borders of the Land of Fire then there had been within.

"I don't want to."

Kisame kept his head directed towards the outside of he hut. Snow slowly flurried from the sky in a soundless rain. A different range of flora grew here, mainly pine and spruce trees littered the area. Some small grass could be found under the snow, so not all life had been choked by the chilling winter weather. On the mountain, the temperature had plummet, so even in the summer months, things remained cold.

The raven observed his colleague before hanging his head and sauntering closer to the entrance. His voice came as a raspy whisper. "You don't know what I saw."

Kisame gave the thirteen-year old a glance.

Itachi crouched to the floor and sat down, undisturbed by the bodies that accompanied him. He held his breath and allowed the steely facade to fall. "Inside of that snake, I saw...I...I didn't know myself."

"Don't we all?" Itachi's partner adjusted his position on the stairs. Kisame used a knowing-smirk, as if he was informed to whatever experience the Uchiha was speaking about.

"No Kisame, I mean...it's different. I couldn't think, it was hard to." The boy stammered but forced himself to continue, to let out his emotions in a dialogue. "I have this little brother. He's alive, not dead. Please, don't tell anyone about it. Deidara knows already, I don't think he's said anything yet."

The mention roused the shark's attention but he simply nodded to allow him to continue. Itachi gave his partner a wary look before resuming. "I never knew myself. I never had the time to look at myself before but, inside of that snake. I saw my life flash before my eyes, you know what I'm talking about."

Kisame simply nodded.

"It seemed to tell me that if I died...everything would fall. My brother would be alone in the world, and I didn't want that. I love him. It's just...it told me something else. I realized it." Itachi paused. "Kisame. I'm a villain; a bloodthirsty killer. That's who I am isn't it?"

His partner was tongue-tied for a moment at the confession, but managed to hesitantly speak. "If it were me, I wouldn't be surprised to be completely honest with you. With the kind of lives we lead. It's the kind of thing we each as Akatsuki share in common. A trail of blood is what we leave in our wake, be it we spilt it ourselves or not. It's how we get along, you get used to it over time."

Itachi shook his head in disapproval and shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "How can you accept that?"

"We all had to at some point." He grinned. "Then again, I wouldn't count myself among the villains yet unless it was completely clear to me. It isn't always bad to have a trail covered in blood. Some of the greatest hero's lead that path."

The raven loosened and leaned in curiously as he sat. "Then what do you think you are?"

Kisame chuckled and scratched the back of his head. He raised his eyebrows at his younger partner before admitting sheepishly. "I don't really know. I don't think I've ever known."

* * *

Trees rustled in unison as a strong breeze carried over the forest landscape. The end to summer was becoming evident for leaves had begun to wither and rot as September closed into the year. Much of the forest was still a refreshing green, but the nights had slowly chilled over into a brisk darkness with each day that ended. For now, clear blue skies still reigned over the Tenchi Bridge.

Deidara had seen many bridges in his life, mainly the ones in Iwagakure that served to replace the streets to better suit living in the mountains. Rope bridges mainly, rickety ones that swung from side to side when the wind blew. After embarking on his new life with Sasori, he'd seen many more of different styles and variations, roving bridges, moon bridges, the common arch bridge, and many more. Though Tenchi Bridge was far from the largest bridge he'd ever seen, it still spanned quite wide compared to others. It's stiff wooden boards spanned over a well supported arc painted in a crimson red. Framing the bridge were rope suspensions that served as extra support, as well as making the structure appear even larger.

Sasori paused at the cliff and so did the other two who had followed. Kabuto's eyes furrowed in concern for his own well-being at the sight, fear still hanging over his head. Deidara simply yawned and wiped a tear from his eye.

"Tenchi bridge." Sasori muttered and addressed Kabuto. His spy jolted to attention and quickly hid his fear behind a blank expression. The puppeteer chose not to make a comment. "I will give you your orders now. Don't disappoint us, the Akatsuki don't like giving third chances."

The blond kept himself clear of the others and simply observed the orders take place. Deidara didn't quite like Kabuto. That night, he was scolded by the spy for playing with his clay too far past his 'bed-time' and then shook awake by the same slightly confused stare. His sudden timid nature disgusted Deidara, too annoying for his own taste. The boy remembered students like that in Iwagakure. Sometimes he attended the Academy for a short period to observe the other students. Far too often, the ones who were too shy to speak stuttered and messed up, sparking frustration in their instructors and the chaos of being picked on by the other students. Deidara held no sympathy for those children, he found them to be disruptive after all, without even trying too.

Iwagakure had developed a culture of 'toughness' within their military. A rock-hard attitude was encouraged in their shinobi, and thus, with every order came a stiff nod. Deidara had gone through the process himself, but remained resilient to his tutor's berating. He didn't think much of Onoki, so his orders often went ignored. That was different now. Sasori was his real master, and Deidara rarely doubted the orders he received.

"It's as you've always done. Spy on Orochimaru and report back in ten days when I give the signal. You will know when it is me." Sasori paused for a moment. "Don't fail to warn us next time, or else I can't guarantee your safety."

Kabuto nodded and spoke in a low tone. "But there's something else, Lord Sasori."

"What is it?" A tenseness was forced back in the puppeteer's throat. His technique wasn't perfect, but it they usually served to suppress questions. Regardless, keeping up the guise that Kabuto had been working with the Akatsuki for a while was more important.

"I've been -my memory is...blurry." His voice cracked on the last word as the silver-haired ninja put a hand on his forehead with downcast eyes. "I don't know what it is. I can't...remember what I've done."

"Tch! What you've done isn't important anymore, not as long as you do well from here on." Sasori spun Hiruko around to tread onto the bridge with hollow footfalls. His new spy moved after him. "To put it simply, you failed to warn us when Orochimaru was about to defect and attack one of our members in the process. We dealt with him but it became obvious that your failure required _punishment_."

"I may change this later, but from here on, this is the default rendezvous point." Hiruko bowed its head. "That will be all."

Sasori steered Hiruko down from the bridge and rejoined Deidara at the end of the path. The boy's eyes followed his master as he moved into the undergrowth of trees that hung over the dirt road. Deidara sent a nonchalant glance towards their newest ally and spoke loudly, "We're gonna leave you now!"

Kabuto visibly stiffened at the call before turning and risking a glance over his shoulder at the younger. The two exchanged acknowledging gazes and allowed a few seconds to pass. Deidara broke eye contact to follow Sasori further into the woods and left the other to stand on his own on the bridge.

The day waned as the two continued to travel southwards into the land. In a country ruled mainly by the Hidden Grass village, the very walk itself was an adventure. If gazed down on the land from high above, the nation would have appeared to be a huge lump of trees that towered above the levelled forest of the Fire country. Much like a strange giant lump just at the edge of the greenery before abruptly ending in a clean cut between flora and the vast desert of the Wind country. Within this grove, nature's hand had knew no limits. Trees twisted and bent out of shape, blades of grass the height of a two story building, mushrooms that could very well be carved out to make a cozy little house. Of course, the animals knew no limits either. If anything, Deidara witnessed the largest mega-fauna right here. Giant sleeping bears that tore through trees to make their beds, typical small birds that flocked around a larger giant sparrow the very size of a horse. The sheer size of everything gave an aura of grandeur. Deidara couldn't resist exploring every now and then, peeking into a corner or lagging behind to observe an animal for a prolonged time. Sasori was obviously not so happy with the child's curiosity, but the puppeteer refrained from scolding too harshly.

Mega-sized reptiles were also present, but they proved to be a problem for the most-part. Deidara had never seen Sasori become so paranoid, so violent with such a petty animal. It was one thing to defend yourself, it was another one to slash the life out of a creature out of pure spite. Throughout their trip during the day, Sasori had been mild and distracted, often turning around to find that his subordinate was long gone, leading him to hastily re-trace his steps in the hopes that Deidara hadn't eaten something he shouldn't have or angered the local boar-in-charge. Today, Deidara had done just that.

A old and beaten-up swine with aged tusks. Deidara had no idea what it was but there just seemed to be a natural hate that wild pigs had for him. The moment the animal glanced at him, it was a full-on charge. This time though, the boy wasn't as vulnerable. He had plenty of reason not the fear such a small pest now that he had put-down plenty of his fellow ninja over the years. Deidara had simply adjusted his stance slightly and waited for the boar to approach.

But there were bigger things in the forest.

Soon enough, two jaws had engulfed the boar with much less than a squeal. The entire clearing was flood over with the coils of a scaled torso. The massive python easily swallowed the swine whole before casting its gaze onto the young blond. Gleaming yellow eyes regarded the child for a moment, but had no time left to make its next move before a glaring light pierced its head. The puppet rose slightly in the air as the shiny blade protruding from its sleeve sunk further between the hissing snake's eyes.

It was over in a single strike. As the snake flopped lifelessly, the puppet was dragged after it, slammed onto the ground with the massive force of the head. Deidara bounced back a bit with wide eyes as he stared at the red-robed puppet. The puppet accompanied the snake before some pops and clicks emitted from its torso. Suddenly, the marionette rose up and yanked the blade out of the skull, allowing blood to spray all over itself.

Sasori sauntered up behind the boy. Deidara blinked and looked over at his master in relief. Knowing what words were waiting to berate him, the blond immediately tried to appear cheerful and change the subject. "Danna! That was so coo-"

Deidara's sentence ended abruptly as he noticed the puppet rise in the air and dive in for another stab. The blade sunk in deep, to the point where its wooden fingers brushed up against the scales. It didn't end there though for the puppet dragged a long violent wound across the snake's stomach. The puppet rose again and moved in to hack and slash at the body. Deidara watched, smile slowly fading as the snake was reduced to nothing more than a mangled piece of flesh. The greenery of the surrounding trees was coated in a bright crimson as more and more blood splattered across the once beautiful clearing. Leaves and trunks were drenched in a red and the puppet seemed to be painted as if the red paint never dried.

"Now to skin it." Sasori mumbled all too loudly.

The boy turned to the puppeteer in shock. "Sasori..."

The puppeteer payed little mind to his underling as he levelled the blade to a sliced section of the snake. Carefully, he slid the sharp end under the scales and began to erratically rake away at the skin, tearing the hard scales from the flesh and watching them spring out everywhere as they forced from their places. The snake's eyeballs were gouged to leave nothing but blackened sockets.

"Sasori no danna, what are you doing?"

The redhead continued to ignore the child's words and the careful flaying of the skin turned into rapid back and forth swings. The puppet embodied Sasori's pure anger and hate as the snakes head was defaced and torn from the bones.

"Sasori no danna?"

The slashes intensified. Mangled flesh almost seemed to liquify into nothing but a massive pile of blood and guts. The bones had been slashed through as well, buts of the spine and skull no reduced to shards.

"Sasori."

_SLASH_

The blade was planted firmly into the flesh but laid still. Dead eyes stared down at the puppets work as Hiruko's own two eyes gazed forward. Suddenly, the shell became animated and the heavy head was swung towards the boy. Deidara staggered backwards at the tacky motion. It wasn't a smooth motion, nothing like the expertise that Sasori usually handled his puppets with. It was almost robotic, like a broken machine attempting to function. Deidara doubted the person in front of him and the sinking feeling that this was not Sasori began to surface in his mind.

Sasori seemed to wait for Deidara to continue, so the boy did as he felt was expected. "What are you...what are you doing?"

"I'm making sure it's dead."

"Yeah, but..." Deidara paused to weigh his words. "Isn't this overkill?"

Hiruko scoffed at the notion. "With Orochimaru, anything is possible, especially with snakes. You should know, a snake is still dangerous even if the head has been chopped off." Sasori's hands trembled as they held the chakra threads at his fingertips. His eyes remained wide until he closed them and calmed down.

The boy nodded slowly and grunted in agreement. Then, he repeated the action faster as if he had just remembered something. "O-oh, okay. I get it." Deidara turned a blind eye to the butchered mutiliation and attempted to erase the scene from his mind. "S-sorry danna."

"...No, I'm the one who should be sorry brat." Sasori would have sighed. The puppet erupted into a white smoke as Hiruko backed up a few steps. He seemed to conflict with himself before speaking again. "I _am_ sorry. I'm wasting our time."

"Ah -no, you're right." Deidara forced the corners of his lips to rise as he waved a hand dismissively. "You're just being careful."

"Kid, listen to me." Sasori snapped.

"I am listening."

"No you're not."

"I am!" Deidara insisted.

"No you are not!" Sasori snarled to silence the child. "No you are not, and this was unnecessary. I was just..." He trailed off.

The boy cocked his head slightly but resisted from commenting. Sasori took a moment to glance at his work and turned back to the kid. What was he supposed to say? This was uncalled for, out of the blue. If Deidara were merely another subordinate or someone else, he would have brushed the conflict under the rug but the child was more than that. It was simple, simple has ever. He had lost control, ceased to be the puppeteer and allowed anger and fear to ravage at his emotions yet again. This was not the first time, but it had been in a long time.

Finally, Sasori continued in calmer tone. "I've just been thinking lately, how easily this could all end. When Leader wanted to take you away from me, I tried to fight it but I realized how useless arguing was. All Orochimaru wanted to do was to get back at me, but that almost caused us to get separated." He focused his gaze on the child. "When I saw that snake, he was the only thing I could think about, so I just reacted."

"Deidara, do you know what you mean to me?"

The boy stood frozen a the intimate question, but shook his head. He did remember faintly that one time, some time before bed, Sasori had mentioned it before. He never heard the redhead actually say it. It was a long time ago, when he was still young enough to be enrolled into the academy. Before Sasori obtained one of his best puppets.

"Of course not, I don't expect you to. One of your generation, well..." Sasori thought for a moment, "No, I was like that too, at your age is what I mean."

"C-can you tell me?" Deidara spoke up.

Hiruko turned and dashed the boy's hopes. "No, we have places to go. Come on."

"Eh? But danna!"

"I said no, get moving!"

"Danna..."

* * *

_Crunch_

_Crunch_

_Crunch_

"The snow's getting deep." Kisame muttered under his breath, leg raised out of the hole he had just created. A vapour cloud misted from Itachi's mouth as he adjusted his hat to get a better look at the piled floor over his high collar. Behind them, several footprints were left in the snow that trailed up towards the shabby cabin the distance.

Itachi plunged another foot into the white fluff and watched as the snow reached well past his ankle and nearly up to his knee. On Kisame, the snow seemed so shallower, but on his end, he wasn't sure how much further he could make it down this route. He glanced at Kisame. "Yeah. It's summer though?"

"Imagine winter, I'd have to plow through this stuff." His partner chuckled and trudged further down the path. "I think it gets deeper from here. Want to take a different route?"

The Uchiha nodded, then regarded the trees. Unlike the ones native to the Shinobi lands, the spruce's were short and piled in snow. Itachi shook his head. "We can't use the trees here, their branches are too weak. Let's go-"

A sudden gust blew over the area. Immediately, Itachi clung to his cloak and pressed the sheltering hat to his head as the cloth flitted in the wind. His partner did the same and tilted their heads low until the freezing gale and passed over them. Once it had passed, Kisame allowed himself to see again and noticed as their footprints were covered in a sheet of ice. Gazing over at his partner, he watched the boy shiver and blow another frozen cloud over his hands to warm them. Itachi tapped his nose and felt surprised at the numbing temperature of his skin.

"Here."

Itachi blinked while Kisame fished his cloak to pull out a light blue scarf. He chucked it at the boy who caught it and quickly inspected the item curiously. It was well-made, the signature of Kirigakure stitched into the cloth. Itachi could tell it was old by the smell and the ragged threads that dangled off the ends. The stormy sea pattern was faded and barely visible, some boats and fish still distinguishable.

"It's a keepsake from my village. Used to use it was when I was younger during the colder season." Kisame backed away from the deep area and stomped off the snow from his leg warmers and shoes. "I don't need it anymore, take it if you want."

The boy gave him an anxious glance before taking off his hat to wrap the scarf around his neck. It looked a bit odd with the Akatsuki cloak, but regardless, the little raven had stopped shivering. Itachi pressed his cheek to the warm fabric, still heated and served to quell some of his frostbite. Itachi resisted for a moment, then finally allowed a smile to grace his lips. "I like it. Thank you."

"No problem." Kisame patted down the bottom half of his cloak. "It was useful so I kept it even after I left. The Akatsuki actually do offer some winter uniforms, so you can ask Leader about that later, or Sasori, I'm sure he's got a few around."

Itachi nodded slowly, then spun to follow the elder up the path. Kisame lead he way and shoved past another brush of trees to reveal steeper path down the forest. The shark scanned the floor and quickly spied out a roughly meter-long fallen branch. The boy observed his partner pick up the branch and poke the sharp side into the snow ahead. The branch sunk down then paused abruptly before lifting again to reveal a darker section of the wood. Kisame took a good look at the branch and tossed it. "It's not deep. Let's go this way."

The younger approached the slope apprehensively and stopped at the top. First, he let his older and taller partner take the first step and skid down the steep hill. Once reassured, Itachi followed down the road but not without staggering. Itachi's shoe slid suddenly to the side and he stiffened for a moment to stop his fall. He exhaled then turned his eyes up ahead to find that Kisame had already advanced a good distance. Itachi pressed his lips together and pushed himself to tread down faster to catch up to his partner. Being left behind was an unpleasant feeling, something the former top-academy student wasn't used to.

Kisame's mind wandered as the ground levelled out and the snow gave way to a frosty collection of leaves piling the floor. Further ahead was an outcropping and a stone Buddha next to it. Itachi almost tripped and fell next to the other Akatsuki but was able to catch himself and stand. In a moment of embarrassment, he fixed his tilted hat and tried to appear calm instead of slightly panicked.

"Snow's slippery huh?"

Itachi jumped at the voice and looked up towards his smirking partner. Kisame laughed at the face. "You need me to walk slower?"

"No, no I don't." The boy fixed his cloak and tried took another deep breath.

"Are you sure?"

"Don't treat me like a kid."

"Sure."

"I can handle myself perfectly fine."

"Of course you can." Kisame rolled his eyes and resumed walking at the same speed. This time, the thirteen-year old followed easily as they rounded the outcropping. Itachi kept silent, opposed to making a comment for fear of appearing childish. He didn't trust himself in this environment.

* * *

"Ow."

...

"Ow!"

"Deidara, quit moving." Sasori grumbled and tried to pull the child's hair through the loop only to have the lock pulled right out when the boy jolted. The puppeteer made a sound similar to a sigh and unfastened the ribbon to restart.

The younger frowned deeply but attempted to stand still. Again, fingers raked through his locks and tugged at some knots painfully but he continued to bear it. It was obvious that the puppeteer had never engaged in the practice of tying hair often, but alas, he could probably do it better than Deidara could.

With the many cases of the boy's hair getting caught in branches and leaves, Sasori finally decided to do something about it, by forcing his subordinate to tie it up. Of course, Deidara did not like the idea at first but after a few attempts to negotiate, he finally let up and allowed the deed to be done. Clambering out of Hiruko was the first task and the puppeteer was lenient and allowed Deidara to do it on his own. Though the boy knew how to tie into a low ponytail as he usually did, tying something he couldn't see had proved to be difficult. After the many results of them being too messy or terribly lopsided, Sasori finally decided to do it for him to the boy's chagrin. Now, the stood with his back faced to the puppeteer while the older attempted to tie it properly and be done with it. Sasori had tried his hardest to be gentle but the final bit where the hair would squeeze through the loop usually ended with Deidara complaining.

"Ow, ow! It hurts! Stop!"

Sasori ignored the cries and tried to pull the tie despite the wriggling. He had dealt with tying up plenty of Akatsuki hostages when he had to, but never once had he ever struggled with it. He grunted in frustration when once again the hair had slipped from his fingers. "Brat, stay still or else. It can't hurt that bad."

He watched the child spin around and glare at him, hand rubbing the back of his head. Sasori furrowed his eyebrows and crossed his arms. "What do you expect me to do?"

"_Don't_ make it hurt." Deidara spat.

"That's what I'm trying to do but you're whining over the smallest tug!"

"Then don't tug!"

"I _have_ to." He tried to emphasize his point.

Deidara pouted and sent his glare to the floor while huffing. A long silence dragged on before the puppeteer decided to pick things up again. He closed his eyes to calm down and stared squarely at the boy. "Do you have any ideas then? Good ones."

Immediately, the blond was eager to snap back but simply stood there at the ready, unable to find a good comeback as the other waited. The silence dragged on until Sasori spoke again. "Alright,_ I_ have an idea. Turn around."

He earned a sceptical look but eventually, his subordinate followed orders and stood still. Deidara screwed his eyes shut to prepare himself for the pain to come. Again fingers raked through his hair again, but seemed to single out a small portion on only the right side of his head. Softly, he felt the ribbon round up the locks and ponytail stand high on his head. He heard Sasori make a confused sound but resumed anyway.

"Okay, it's done."

Deidara blinked and looked around, then spun to gaze up at Sasori curiously. The puppeteer held a simple smile on his face and nodded in approval. "It doesn't look too bad actually. The ribbon was longer than I thought, so it's a bit tall."

The boy blinked again and reached up to touch his head. His fingers curled around a long object that felt like his ribbon, now tied around a clump of his hair in a cylinder. The rest of it had been left to drape freely over his back and shoulders.

"It should help by keeping some hair out of your other eye." Sasori fished out a small scroll from his cloak and summoned a mirror to hand to the kid. He watched the child accept the mirror and view himself with a perplexed expression. Deidara squinted at himself and touched the ribbon a few times before he handed it back.

"It looks okay, a bit weird."

"Really? I think it looks good." Sasori put away the items and smiled again coyly. He ruffled the child's hair and left it in a messy state before returning to Hiruko. He stepped inside the puppet and attached the chakra threads again, happy to finally be done. The shell of the puppet slowly pulled closed and in a flash, Hiruko was clothed again in the Akatsuki robe. Sasori didn't even have the time to properly animate the puppet before the child darted by his vision.

"Danna! Is that a gorilla?!" Deidara shouted briefly before leaping onto a giant toadstool mushroom already a ten or so meters away.

Sasori looked on ahead to see a large silver-back lumber on all fours in a sun-dappled clearing. The gorilla could have been three stories tall and even more so if it stood on two feet. The puppeteer was immediately concerned as he steered the puppet to follow the young child. Silver-back male gorilla's were not territorial but Sasori knew them to be particularly dangerous if angered, and considering Deidara's record with animals, the chances of pissing one off was through the roof.

"Brat come back! Hey! Don't!"

* * *

**A/N: Happy Halloween! It's one of my favorite holidays but I never really know to properly celebrate it. The most I've ever done was watch a horror movie or two and help out at the local haunted house with their displays but otherwise, I don't really do much. **

**This chapter doesn't have a lot happening, sorry. It has a place but I'm busy fleshing out the final bits to the next arc. I kind of have a headcanon where Sasori is convenient like Tenten and carries stuff with his scrolls all the time that aren't necessarily weapons. I also want to flesh out Itachi further. **

**Thanks for reading! Please review if you'd like! Nice to meet you all and Happy Halloween!**


	42. The Way of Kakuzu

**A/N: I'm so sorry for not updating in about a month! I had this chapter half-done for a while but things came up in school and I ended up not being able to complete it for the longest time! I was supposed to have a chapter up specially for Sasori's birthday but I could never complete it on time, so before I knew it, a good two weeks had passed. It's pointless now, I'll just see what I'll do with it. **

* * *

**The Way of Kakuzu**

_ "_Look! Look!"

Hiruko lazily swung its head over to view the child's latest work. A tiny Tanuki sculpture stood within the cupped hands of the little boy, angular jagged teeth pried open as it reared up, flat paws held high. Sasori stared at it for a full minute, anticipation building as Deidara prepared himself for the feedback.

"It's nice."

Deidara held his ecstatic smile and waited for more in as stiff position, only to watch his master turn around and resume walking. The blond's smile melted in disappointment before running to catch up to the older. The landscape was strange here. Like a desert, the sun beat down on the area, barely shrouded by the spindly naked branches of giant trees. The bark was grey in colour and not a single leaf was visible on the floor. Apart from this dead grove, cracked sections of earth went on beyond the horizon in the distance. Deidara could only assume this was what used to be a forest until the conditions became too dry for the flora to continue life that way.

Sasori kept his eyes trained on the path ahead, occasionally glancing at the map for further instruction. No landmarks were visible here, so the task of navigating was crucial. This small desert only spanned a couple hundred kilometres, so getting out of shouldn't have to be hard. He returned his gaze to the road and noticed some darker specks on the way. Hiruko paused and inspected the trail of faint footprints.

The boy noticed his danna pause and took it as an opportunity to rest. Deidara leaned himself against the rough surface of the nearby tree. He held a pout and crushed the Tanuki figure in his hand, now a canvas waiting to be molded into art. However, the blond's head drew a blank. He'd tried many creatures from the ant to the buffalo and as usual, Sasori simply marked it off with disdain. Now, Deidara wasn't angry, but the flat look in his master's eyes whenever they laid upon his new work made something sink in his throat. He had begun to crave the feedback of the puppeteer, be it good or bad. His C2 had rightfully left an impression on him, but that very same kind of ego-boosting praise came only once.

"At least say something more than 'it's nice'." Deidara mumbled. His hand mouth lolled over the clay ball and coated in saliva. They weren't particularly hungry today, Deidara wondered if they felt the same feelings he did.

He his left hand. "You understand, right?"

The mouth simply gaped and closed in reply, tongue waving in the air to taste it. Deidara let out a sigh and made a fist to force the tongue back inside. The boy continued to mumble to himself, oblivious to the large hand hovering closer to neck from behind the tree.

_These prints are very fresh_. Sasori concluded and allowed Hiruko to rise again. He wheeled the puppet around to check on his subordinate, only to catch a glimpse of the hand prying open and readying to clamp down on the child. Acting on pure instinct, Hiruko's tail shot out and knocked the hand away from the boy.

Deidara flinched before bounding back to put distance himself and their new assailant. A trail of dust kicked up as he slid some metres away, then made a battle-ready stance. Sasori took a few steps closer to the tree and shouted, "Who's there! Come out!"

"Just when I thought this bounty would be an easy one..."

_I know that voice_. Sasori grimaced. There was only one person he knew who was bold enough to try and attack them like this. Ever since the child was accepted by the organization, the puppeteer had kept wary of him. There was no true safe haven from the miser. Not just for the boy's safety, but the very fact that the puppeteer had to look out for himself in his presence made him anxious.

"Kakuzu."

Out stepped a familiar tall man. Clearly adorning the mask and the slashed Takigakure headband, there was no doubt about who it was. Deidara visibly shivered at the sight of him and shifted closer to the puppet master. Kakuzu sent a cold glare towards the blond and focused his attention on his fellow Akatsuki. He raised a hand and posed it like a claw, a dark shade fading into his skin from the wrist up. "What a day to cross paths."

"Deidara is off the menu. Go find some other bounty, a real one perhaps." Sasori growled.

Kakuzu stepped over the large tree root and approached the two confidently. "Oh really? The last time I checked, he was easy pickings, easy money."

"Danna..." Deidara whined. He shrunk away from the miser with panic filled eyes. Out of all the Akatsuki, next to Tobi, this man was probably one of his least favourites after the snake defected. Other than the fact that the former waterfall ninja actively hunted him, he knew for a fact that even Sasori had reason to fear him.

Deidara had not truly feared Kakuzu at first. He used to always think Sasori was the strongest, and wherever he was, the boy had nothing to be afraid of. It was only when the two passed by an collection office years ago did the puppeteer admit that despite his own feigned self-assurance, Kakuzu was feared by all. He claimed even Pein himself was wary of his power, but still managed to keep him under control for now. If money was on the table, Kakuzu was up for the job. Deidara often wondered what the miser was hiding beneath that mask, beneath all that clothing he kept on.

A hawk glided over the area, it's screech carrying over the desert like a long wind. No sooner had a hand detached from Kakuzu's arm and burst into the sky. Sasori watched with apprehension as the bird was plucked right out of the air and slammed into the ground, now nothing more than a mess of feathers. Just a bird, and petty animal and even that had managed to annoy the miser to the point of violence. Sasori never thought much of animals, none of the Akatsuki really did but even then, none were the type to kill at the very first speck of annoyance. Kakuzu was a brutal man.

Kakuzu darkened his glare, causing the boy to hitch his breath. "This stupid pest is leeching off of our funds. It's time he payed us back."

"Don't make me remind you again." Sasori's voice faltered slightly. No matter how many times he managed to scare off this Akatsuki, he always came back. Like a stubborn predator that wouldn't give up on its prey.

"Oh quit it with the lecture." Kakuzu rolled his eyes and walked a few paces closer. "It isn't against the rules to kill other members. If anything, this brat will be serving a better purpose. You also need a real partner."

"_Actually, Deidara is officially off the table for your information, Kakuzu_."

Deidara blinked and yelped in shock as a green bulbous creature grew out of the ground. The thing slunk up and separated in half, revealing a dual-coloured face. The boy backed away stiffly. "It's a talking plant! Some weird Aloe Vera thing!"

"_**What was that? **I don't think I look anything like an Aloe Vera_." It wondered aloud in two distinct voices.

Sasori would have sighed. Of course, how could he forget? Deidara had never met Zetsu before. Even if the plant man talked to the members regularly, the boy was always strangely absent whenever he showed up to their cell. "Brat, this is Zetsu. He's part of the Akatsuki."

"_Hi there_!"

Kakuzu furrowed his eyebrows. "What do you mean?"

Zetsu twisted on the floor again and turned to address the miser. "_Leader forbade the kid from dying is all, at least not at the hands of the Akatsuki members. _**_He's not keen on you hunting him_.**"

"When did that happen?" Sasori asked.

"_**I don't really remember. I think he just mentioned it one day when none of you were around. **What can I say? He's a busy guy_."

Fear subsided in the child and the blond approached the stranger curiously. Deidara crouched down to Zetsu's level and squinted his eyes at him. "...So you're Zetsu huh?"

Sasori ignored the staring contest and turned back to the miser. Now reassured with the Zetsu hanging around, he he felt comfortable asking. "Kakuzu, Deidara isn't in it is he?"

"He is. The updated version came out a few weeks ago." The tall man pulled a black hard-cover book from his sleeve and flipped through to a certain page. Holding the spine between his index finger and thumb, he displayed it to the puppeteer.

On the page was a profile on the blond. At the top left was a photo snapped of the child standing by Sasori's side, back turned to the likely hidden camera on a mountain path. Underneath on the beige page was his personal data and mission log. Other information such as criminal data and sightings were written on the opposite page in black ink. Two other smaller pictures depicted a clearer picture of Deidara from different angles, depicting a younger version, probably around six to seven years old. In red ink was the bounty, a decent 50,000,000 ryo.

"It's not a lot, but he was easy prey." Kakuzu gestured towards the page.

Zetsu leaned in. "_**Fifty million? **Pretty good for a first entry. Congratulations_."

"I'm in what?" Deidara padded up the book and took a closer look at his photo as well as taking the time to read what was written. He glanced up at the miser and mustered up the most polite tone he could. "Is this a bingo book? Can I read it?"

"Don't start hunting kid. I'd rather you not aspire to be like Kakuzu." Sasori watched the book get handed to the boy.

The cover was leather bound with no title at the top. Deidara flipped to the index, listed with headers going from D-rank offenders to the S-rank top class at the bottom. Several names were listed, some were just titles with no real identification, supposed mystery ninja. The contents of the ranks between D to C took up a good thirty percent of the contents, each page with one criminal on it. Mainly reputable thieves and petty forgery escalated to more serious crimes like stolen kinjutsu and several forms of terrorism. Deidara found himself listed under the B-rank, medium-level offenders who were well on their way to climbing the scale.

The Akatsuki didn't have a specific section but Deidara did find the members listed in the S-rank. While his own bounty was rather large for a child, the bounties of those like Sasori and Kakuzu were frighteningly high. Kakuzu was listed with a 210,000,000 ryo on his head while the puppeteer's fetched for a hefty 250,000,000. Some profiles were crossed out in a black marker, what Deidara assumed to be caught criminals that the miser had hunted down. With the many large numbers that surrounded the Akatsuki organization, he still managed to wonder why Zetsu, Pein, and Konan were not among them.

It wasn't too often one would find a bingo book with the Akatsuki. Only Kakuzu truly ever used it, and this very use had made it so the copy was free to the organization. Bingo books came in different versions. Each village had their own to enlist traitors and other criminals to the hunter ninja of that military. Deidara remembered Onoki owning one in his personal library, but its space in the shelf was usually empty. Not that the boy could read through it anyway, it was sealed off and could only be opened by those who new the release technique. Sasori didn't own for sure, he never really struck Deidara as the hunter type.

Towards the end of the book, there was a small section less than twenty pages thick. It was so short that the boy nearly overlooked it. Each page was subtly marked off with a coloured note tab near the top, just so the very edge of the piece poked out of the surface. Deidara blinked and skimmed, wary of how long he had been using the book for fear of Kakuzu's wrath. Shinobi from several different nations were listed, but not labelled as traitorous in their data. They seemed no different from the ones that Deidara had seen in the rest of the contents, but somehow, they were special.

A page dropped to the left hand side and Deidara's eyes widened. Red hat, armoured from the head down, a masked face with only two dark glaring eyes. The man hadn't committed anything that the boy knew of, he seemed like a kind guy who ran with the wind with the very swiftness of a horse. Regardless, Han was listed in the book, and with a whopping 300,000,000 ryo on his head.

"Jin...Jinchchu-riki...Jinchuriki." Deidara rolled the word off his tongue a few times until it became more natural. Everyone in this small portion of the book seemed to have it in their data, but what was it?

"Sasori no danna."

The puppeteer briefly broke away from his chat with Zetsu and addressed the boy. Deidara lowered the item in his hands and asked, "What's a Jinchuriki?"

...

Kakuzu recoiled at the question and furrowed his eyebrows darkly. "Eh? What? You don't know?" Immediately, he spun and snapped at the other Akatsuki. "Sasori, you haven't even been teaching this brat the important stuff have you?!"

Hiruko didn't spare the miser a glance. "I didn't think it was important."

"Not important?" He spat. "When the organization we are in centre's around that very thing? Is that not important to inform him of? I thought you were at least doing your job."

"I am doing my job." Sasori grumbled. "And he's not a real member so he doesn't have to know."

"Know what?" Deidara piped up.

His question was blatantly ignored as the miser made another jab at the puppeteer's competence. Though Sasori seemed eager not to answer any questions, the rising anxiety and possible threat that the other posed was enough to start a full-blown argument. Deidara could only stand on the sidelines as the two adults bickered fiercely, unable to find even the tiniest chance to get his master's attention to answer.

Zetsu gazed over the argument and turned to the boy, a slight twinge of sympathy crossing his expression at the sight of the perplexed child. Slinking over, he bumped the boy in the shoulder to bring his attention.

"_Here, **I'll explain what a Jinchuriki is.**" He paused. "Have you ever heard of something called the tailed beasts?_**_ Giant monsters with several tails_.**"

Deidara hummed, then nodded. "Un, but I Onoki told me they were just stories."

"_**Well they're not.** They're completely real, huge concentrated masses of chakra, larger than that of Kisame's monstrous reserves. If such a large amount of chakra was given to a person, they would be granted with immense power, often too much to control. _**_Their body would simply turn into that of the beast. Luckily Kisame is only blue_.**"

"...Oh! So that's why he's blue!" The boy clapped in satisfaction, but the smile faded quickly. "Wait, so if they're real, does Kisame have tailed-beast chakra?"

"_**No, if that were the case, the Akatsuki would have taken it already.** Kisame was just fortunate to be born that way. Jinchuriki are basically containers for that power, they contain a single tailed-beast within them, but it's sealed off so they don't escape. **The purpose of Akatsuki are to capture all nine existing tailed-beasts. Sasori has long been assigned the three-tails with no progress thus far despite more than five years at** _**_it_.**"

Sasori whipped around at the mere mention. "Shut up. I'm just not allowed to make my move yet!"

"I've at least managed to track the seven-tails." Kakuzu sneered and crossed his arms haughtily. "Do you even know where _yours_ is?"

"No, but you're lucky. She's from your village. Of course you know."

The bickering resumed.

Zetsu turned back to Deidara. "_**The biju used to run rampant across the lands as the clans before the first war fought over them for their power. Theyoften broke loose from one clan and went on a rampage, killing many people.** Most people don't tell this part of the story anymore, but once ninja villages began to be established, the beasts were sealed within people to harness their power, called Jinchuriki_."

The boy remained silent for a moment to let the information sink in. It took a while to make sense of it all, but it seemed to lock in place exactly where they needed to. Han, the village, why he was taken away from him and the strange hybrid animal the older attempted with his clay. Something cleared in his mind, a thick cloud of confusion he eventually stopped trying to dispel after years of discomfort. _So this is why..._

* * *

_Han lidded his eyes, rolling the tiny clay between his large hands until it was completely spherical. Rolling it again, the clay became cylinder shaped, a sausage-like form though not quite long enough to be a snake. Pinching at the back half, Han created four stubs and elongated them, four thick legs protruding from the middle of the clay shape. Lifting one end up, that end became a head, though it seemed to have four ears instead of two like Deidara expected. At the back end, the long tail was split into five parts, which the child could only interpret as some kind of hair for the horse's end. _

_ Even then, something about the shape of the head didn't quite resemble a horse, though the body was obviously that of a stallion. Deidara furrowed his eyebrows in puzzlement, looking up to his friend. _

_ "What's that?"_

_ Han seemed to hesitate, "It's...a creature I created. A dolphin-horse."_

* * *

"_Jinchuriki tend to be loners, so they're easy prey anyways. Many people either don't know, don't care, or just plain despise them. _**_They think they are the demons themselves, not humans who were unfortunate enough to suffer being a weapon for their village_.**"

Zetsu gauged the boy's expression. Deidara seemed to stare right through him, book now hung by his side. His lips slightly parted in an look that seemed to be mix of dead fear and awe, stuck in a world all his own. The blond's fingers slipped from the cover and flopped onto the floor, making a small tear on the page with Han's profile picture.

Curiously, the plant man neared the child but Deidara didn't move, mumbling something inaudible. Zetsu shrugged to himself and pulled up the bingo book for himself, he had always wondered why Kakuzu was always so enraptured in its records. No matter how much he watched, he could never quite make sense of the man.

"**_Han from Iwagakure.._.**" He turned to the boy. "_Deidara, do you happen to know Han_?"

The child snapped out of his daze and straightened. Why would Zetsu ask that? Was the Akatsuki going to hurt Han? Would the organization force him to take them to Han to capture him? Immediately, the boy conjured up something on the spot and tried to force it through his mouth. "N-no, I don't. I've seen him but... I d-don't know him very well."

Zetsu cocked his head. Sure, he caught the obvious lie, but this was interesting. "_**Is that so?** Well it's still something. I hope you know Deidara, this information is very valuable to us_." He made a coy grin while flipping the book closed.

Deidara grunt in reply, gaze focused on the three that stood before him. The older pair were still bickering about something, though it seemed to turn into an insult battle. A hot, rocky feeling stirred in his chest. He didn't like this, not at all. Not that he would ever admit he ever still cared about his old village, but even then, he refused to even imagine the Akatsuki and Han going head-to-head.

"Come on, brat."

Hiruko bumped him roughly in the opposite direction. "I'm done here. Let's just leave."

"Hold on." Kakuzu paused him. "I didn't come just to steal your kid."

Sasori shot a glare past his subordinate's shoulder. "Could've fooled me."

Zetsu slunk over the ground beneath Kakuzu with a curious look. "_Then what did you come for_?"

The miser bent over to grab his bingo book and patted light puffs of dust off the cover. He grumbled hoarsely for a few seconds. "Leader has decided to take you off of the investigation assignment."

Sasori whirled around. "What? Why?"

"But..." Kakuzu trailed off as if for dramatic effect, eye flashing in annoyance. "The kid is staying." He slipped the book into his sleeve and approached the pair. "For now, you're with me on another assignment. I was hoping I could take the kid and excuse myself from it by sending him in to the exchange office, but unfortunately, that's not happening."

The puppeteer snorted at the idea. "And what makes leader think that him, an eleven-year old child, can do this mission for me?"

_Wait, I'm doing it?_ Deidara blinked.

"Not alone. Itachi's going with him."

The boy froze. Sasori simply dipped his head and sighed. Regardless of how bad a decision that may of been, he couldn't argue with his orders.

Zetsu raised a brow. "_**Oh?** This should be interesting_."


	43. Yugakure

**Yugakure**

_Deidara and Itachi working together?_ The idea didn't sound too well-thought out to Sasori. Left with no other companion but the miser just further down the unpaved path, he couldn't help but feel a twinge of concern. From the very beginning, he could tell Deidara wasn't fond of the new kid. They began with a fight, and ended with a fight, an undesirable kind of relationship. Not a bond, not from what Sasori could tell with his many years of experience.

That wasn't the only thing that left him wondering. Sasori never let the blond do missions by himself. He always had to accompany him, no matter how small the task. Not that the puppeteer always helped, but he considered it a necessary duty to oversee his subordinate's activities. If Sasori were ordered away on a large-scale mission, A-rank to S-rank, he had Tobi put up with the brat. He trusted few others with the child. In this case however, Sasori had to admit, he found himself a bit fond of the new member, so he came to wonder how Itachi would fare with Deidara constantly glaring holes into the back of his head.

Up ahead, he faintly noticed Kakuzu pause on the road and turn to him. Sasori stopped as well and froze up apprehensively for a moment. Dappled light streamed over the pathway, and just shown over the miser's eyes, revealing no intent to kill, to the redhead's relief. The puppeteer dared stroll closer, gaze still trained on his temporary partner.

Finally, he spoke. "You know what I don't get?" Kakuzu returned to the road. He continued talking faster than Sasori was able to manage a guess. "Why these damn kids keep entering the organization. That Iwa kid was one thing, but then the Uchiha boy came along and actually joined!"

Sasori waited for a few seconds before commenting smoothly. "He _is_ an Uchiha."

"So what? He's only thirteen. What the hell does Leader expect from a brat that young? Not only that, but he's probably been coddled with no sense of what really makes the world go round. He's from the leaf after all."

The puppeteer could haphazard a guess at what Kakuzu was talking about. Though he understood what the miser meant by referring to Konoha. When he was a fledgling shinobi, it shocked him quite a bit to learn about the methodologies in that country. Having been raised with sharp orders and a written number next to his name in Suna, Konoha appeared to be an amusement park to other hidden villages. Sasori dipped Hiruko's head slightly. "As far as I know, Leader had kept watch on Itachi for years. I don't doubt his judgement this time."

Kukuzu huffed. "You're just saying that because you have another little brat tailing you twenty-four seven. You like kids."

"Believe me, I don't." Sasori snapped irritably.

"Oh? Then why keep Deidara around?"

The puppeteer refused to answer Kakuzu furrowed an eyebrow at the puppet master and returned his focus to the road ahead. "Whatever. Those two are a waste of time and money. Leader decided to put me up with two things I dislike, leeches and wasted effort." Kakuzu griped on. "How do you and Kisame deal with that huh?"

"I have no idea how Kisame is faring. As for me, I got used to it." Sasori tapped his chin in thought.

"Is it annoying?"

"Deidara keeps out of my way. Only sometimes." Sasori feigned interest in the rest of Kakuzu's nagging and griping. He kept only a single ear tuned while the rest of his thoughts drifted. _Typical old _grouch._ I think he's passing his eighties now. _He rested his head in his open palm, other hand controlling the slow walking pace of Hiruko. _I wonder how Deidara's doing without me._

* * *

"_FIGHT ME!_ FIGHT ME RIGHT HERE RIGHT NOW!"

Itachi moved to stand next to a nearby tree, putting distance between himself and the enraged blond he was tasked to put up with. On the other side of the small mossy clearing, Deidara glared at him, mouth set in an unamused frown. The Uchiha drew in a breath, then tried to turn and ignore the younger boy and make his way further down the trail to their assigned area. He felt a gaze burn into the back of his head but pushed on.

"What are you doing? Hey! I'm talking to you!" He heard Sasori's subordinate shout from behind him. Itachi chose to keep walking, quickening with the false hope that it would end this argument. This hope was dashed as a hand cupped over his shoulder, causing a quick memory to flash into his mind. Instinctively, he whirled around and made a swing at Deidara, a half slap, half bash.

Deidara dodged back and took a still stance, hands raised. He grinned. "Do you accept my challenge then?"

Itachi furrowed his eyebrows and stared at him skeptically "What do you want? I've already fought you. Twice now." He lowered his arm and relaxed his position. Watching the other child loose the stance as well and put both hands on his hips haughtily.

"_Oh_! Right! That _was_ twice now wasn't it?" His voice dribbled with sarcasm. Deidara rolled his eyes and turned back to the Akatsuki member with a dark expression. "Don't forget, you humiliated me during our second battle. Sasori no danna would have thought higher of me if it weren't for you cheating!"

"Cheating?" The raven repeated incredulously. "I didn't use any Genjutsu. I didn't break my promise."

"You _say_ that! But how do I know what you're saying is truth?" Deidara countered, crossing his arms with a huff.

"You can't, but I swear, I didn't use it. I don't Sasori thought so either." Itachi turned back to the path. "You'll have to deal with that." He started down the road, a familiar glare searing into his skull. He heard a dangerous growl from the other, unsatisfied with the reply.

The forest seemed to open up further down the road, a light visible just past the trees. Deidara dropped his anger for curiosity, quickly running ahead of Itachi to get a better look. Out of the undergrowth was a nice view of rolling hills and a treeline just a few hundred meters way from a small village nestled right next to a river. Itachi joined Deidara at the top of the hill, gazing over towards the horizon where the sun was due to set in a few hours. Though the sky was still relatively blue, he was glad to have made it before night came.

Steam rose from the many houses in the village, giving it a calm and serene look from afar. Both children exchanged glances and began to traipse down the steep hill, Deidara going just a little faster and stumbling at the bottom.

Approaching the village, they came upon a large sign hanging over the entrance, large characters written at the top. Itachi took a moment to stare at the grandeur but Deidara ignored it, not to be bothered with something so trivial. Two guards stood at the front of the village entrance, their eyes already trained on the two. When they approached, one stepped forward to block their path.

"State your business."

Deidara blinked and gazed over. The other was a bit taller than Sasori was, a ninja too considering the headband he wore. The symbol wasn't familiar to him, first time he'd ever seen three squiggly lines as a recognized symbol. This was a bit strange wasn't it? Didn't danna tell him something about the clans leaving a village that would no longer support them?

"We are here on request to investigate a massacre?" Itachi spoke for him, stopping just short of the man.

The shinobi hummed for a moment, then returned to the two. "Ah, yes, I do remember something like that."

"Great! Let's go!" Deidara chirped and moved around the adult, only be harshly shoved aside by the shinobi. The man stood tall, expression monotonous and steely at the same time. The blond stumbled back but caught himself. He made a low growl at him, a hand reaching inside a pouch by his side. This caught Itachi's attention, forcing him to slide in front of the child and make a grab for his wrist and halt it. They couldn't afford to kill anyone here, not yet at least.

The guard frowned at the motion. "And how do we know you're truly who you say you are?"

Itachi sent Deidara a warning look and slowly let go of his wrist. Itachi turned to address the shinobi properly, and kept the boy under his watch at the corner of his eye. Sasori as well as Leader had intrusted him with the subordinate, so he might as well do it right.

"There should be someone who can meet with us. We'll stay here and wait."

"Good." The guard commented, seemingly satisfied with the suggestion. "Unfortunately, due to the events that transpired, we're not allowed to have outsiders in the village without an escort. We'll have someone bring you around shortly."

With that the guard signalled to the other guard, sending him off running into the street. Itachi hovered a hand and forced Deidara back a few steps until they were out of earshot, yet still in view. The blond sent a weak glare towards the guard but managed to stay obedient

"What were you thinking? Don't use your bombs here." Itachi hissed.

Deidara simply narrowed his gaze in response, pressing his lips together. Itachi sighed and motioned the boy to sit down in the grass. Both plopped onto the floor and the eleven-year old immediately fished out a chunk of clay into his palm. He slipped his hair bang behind his ear and began to squish and pull at it, presumably warming up the material. Itachi kept a careful watch on his work, slightly concerned with what the boy might do with it.

Next, he forced his hand tongues into their mouths and held the clay between his palms, rolling it into a fat cylinder. Deidara seemed to have droned out the outside world the moment he finished with it, holding it upright and tearing off a chunk from the end. He laid the clay cylinder on his knee and began to roll the smaller chunk into a ball, just proportional to the parent piece. Itachi could only guess Deidara could do it faster if he wanted to, but he was taking his time with this one. The ball was set down and the cylinder and picked up. The boy pinched the torn end between his fingers and compressed it until the cylinder appeared to be more like a poorly done cone. The ball was plopped onto the tapered end and Deidara took a few more small pieces from his pouch and began to place them on the sphere.

Itachi continue to observe his work curiously until it became all to clear what he was making. Though it lacked a visible face or tell-tale pattern on the body, it was obviously a little chibi version of Sasori. Itachi blinked a few times and leaned closer to take a better look. This obviously didn't go to well with Deidara, who immediately shrugged away and hid the sculpture behind his arms. "Don't look."

"Is that...Sasori?"

Deidara's eyes wandered for a moment. "...Yes."

"Do you miss him already?"

"No!" The blond shot up from the floor and shoved the little clay doll into his pouch, face red with embarrassment. "Why'd you think that? Huh? I just got bored and he just popped into my mind okay!"

Itachi was silent for a moment. "Okay."

"Hmm..." The blond grumbled in his throat. He caught movement at the corner of his eye and turned to the entrance, noticing the guard that left had returned with a companion. The other seemed to be a shinobi of the same rank as the guards. Her face held a strangely empty look, some bags visible beneath her eyes.

Deidara tapped Itachi's shoulder and pointed towards the kunoichi standing at the gate, staring straight at them. Itachi nodded and stood up, leading the boy back to the entrance. She seemed to size them up for a moment, a glint of disdain showed when they within a few feet of her.

She muttered 'children' questionably under her breath, but eyebrows furrowing slightly. "I've been sent by the village leader. Are you two here to survey the massacre scene?"

"Yes, we're here on behalf of the Akatsuki. It may take a few days, so we'll be staying at an inn meanwhile." Itachi spoke with a controlled tone.

The woman's judgemental gaze fell, impressed by his formality. "Excellent, follow me."

* * *

_(Naruto Shippuuden Movie 3 OST Track 7- Fire Drops)_

Itachi felt a little sick to his stomach.

No, it wasn't the broken windows, or the fact that the area was strangely isolated from the village and void all life. It wasn't the decrepit houses or the large gashes that lay across the floor. The wooden houses looked fairly normal really, the only tell-tale sign that something had occurred would be the shattered windows with splatters of something black inside. The broken doors and scars that ran along the walls, harshly reaping away at the wood as if a zoo animal had gotten loose. So this was the aftermath of a massacre?

Bright yellow warning tape bore the line between where citizens could wander and where they could not. Even if the houses behind were inhabited, they were unusually silent, not another villager within the street. Itachi gazed over the scene, then looked at the kunoichi who led them here.

"We removed the bodies." Her voice came out as hollow, a hint of fear slowly disappeared as she ended the sentence. "You're welcome to see some in the morgue. We've already had an autopsy done."

Itachi remained silent for a moment, then Deidara caught his eye. He seemed impatient with a forced frown, staring at the Uchiha expectantly and nodded towards the lady. Of course, he had to find out as much information as possible before they went in. "How were they killed?"

"The majority were slashed randomly." She drew a finger from her left side to her right. "Some were cut in half almost completely." Another line was drawn between her shoulder down to her hip. "Long ones, not just knife cuts. The exceptions weren't much different, but what we found disturbing was how their bodies were displayed."

"Displayed?" Deidara repeated, suddenly interested.

"Yes. When we retrieved them, they were on the floor. We found them nearby Jashinist symbols, so as we know, it's likely the killer is a Jashinist."

Itachi wrapped his head around the new word. "Excuse me, but what is a Jashinist?"

The woman blinked. "Oh right, you're just kids. They don't teach this stuff in the academies of the great nations anymore do they?" Her comment made the two wonder. She didn't delay in attempting to explain, drawing a circle in the air and then an triangle in the middle. "This the symbol of a cult known as Jashin. Though no historical records give evidence of how it started, we know it was a widespread religion during the warring states period, especially in places where violence was particularly rife. Once the first ninja village's were established, the group downsized and they disappeared from the record a few years before the second world war started. Scholars believed that the religion had gone extinct, but as it seems, it hasn't. For now, we know generally of who our killer is."

"Then why are we here?" Deidara blurted out. Itachi sent him a 'stand down' glare but the look went unnoticed. "You already know who it is, so call us over huh?"

The kunoichi's face darkened, but the child remained unfazed, challenging her. Itachi was frustrated with his behaviour, but he had to admit, the boy was right somehow. Why _were_ they here? If they knew this much already, they could have simply sent a squad to search for anyone who was a notable Jashinist.

"It's because we're low on forces." She sighed and crossed her arms. "Since Yugakure got rid of the hidden village status, clans from left to right were leaving with no reason to stay. I'm part of one of the few families left, and even then, we also planned to leave shortly. However, within the week, this happened. Asking help from the other nations would be dangerous, we don't know if they've fully recognized as a former shinobi village, but, we don't have enough forces left over in our military to send a huge squad to look for someone so potentially dangerous." She nodded. "Luckily in the midst of our crisis, your leader offered to send someone to check it out and do the job for us."

"I see." Itachi turned back to the scene. "Can we enter?"

She nodded. "I'll be waiting around here. It'd be best of you don't stay any longer than 8."

"Yeah, yeah, I get it." Deidara waved a hand rudely and ducked under the warning tape. Itachi sighed and shook his head before following.

Once they entered the abandoned street, it felt as if they just entered a ghost town. A still greyness lay over the area, and a hint of fear managed to effect even the fearless Deidara. He stuck close to Itachi and let his eyes wander, peering into the dark windows, the notion that perhaps they forgot to remove one body or another at the back of his mind. He kept a good within a good meter of his companion, and glanced over his shoulder, noticing that the woman had disappeared from behind the warning tape. Deidara panicked for a moment but sucked in a breath to calm down. She probably found somewhere more comfortable to wait. Just standing in the same place for hours on end was unreasonable.

Itachi halted and felt something bump into his back. Deidara stumbled slightly and looked up, the Uchiha still staring elsewhere as if he had not felt it at all. Deidara blinked and followed his gaze, falling on a door cracked open just an inch. It seemed unnecessary to him, but for some reason, warning tape had been place across it. Deidara thought this kind of tape was only used to keep civilians out. They were within the area now, so he guessed he was wrong.

Deidara squinted and peered into the crack. Even his sharp eyes couldn't spy out anything in the darkness, the shut windows in the room didn't do much to help either. Itachi moved to the door and pressed his fingers against the surface. A loud creak emitted from the hinges as the door swung back slowly. Daylight flooded in a few feet onto the floor, revealing a chalk drawn in the shape of a person laid on the ground.

Itachi stepped in. The moment he put his foot down on the wooden floors, a loud creak rang out. Deidara shivered slightly, unused to the strangeness of it all. The blond hastily moved to the window and pulled back the curtains, allowing daylight the fill the space once more. Deidara was about to take a slow breath when he heard Itachi make a surprised sound. He turned to glance at the other but found himself following his gaze to the floor. A circle was drawn in a blackening substance. When light hit it, it was obvious that the blood had been splattered all over the room. Two drawn individuals, one on the floor and one seemed to hang from the wall by their hands, little cards stuck next to them with numbers. Two adults, much larger than them. Some blood hand prints were visible on the window, as if a desperate struggle had taken place. Itachi felt his stomach stir once again, and cupped a hand over his mouth and pretended to cough.

* * *

"This is the place?" Sasori approached the gates with Kakuzu, wooden doors underneath a small red torii. It seemed to sit in the middle of nowhere, no notable villages within hundreds of kilometres.

Kakuz nodded. "It's a shinto shrine. Anyway, there are too many brats intering the organization. I wouldn't be surprised if Leader decided to add a junior division. If that's the case, I'm looking for any reason to leave."

The puppeteer would have sighed. He was still hung up on that? Well, he couldn't exactly blame the miser, if he weren't responsible for one the kids, then he would probably thought the same, but it didn't matter now. "That won't happen, I'm sure."

Kakuzu snorted and turned to he doors. He grasped at the gates and shook them, only to have it rattle with the hinges that held it closed. The Akatsuki grumbled and shook it more forcefully, face twisting into a frustrated scowl and let go. "I would just break in, but I don't think that will bode too well with the people inside."

"If there are any." Sasori pointed out. "Listen."

The miser grunted sceptically, but took his advice and stayed still, straining his ears for the slightest noise. All he heard was the rustling trees in the breeze and some bugs buzzing about. Not a single footstep from an animal or bird call. Kakuzu narrowed his gaze. "It's silent."

"It's the middle of the day, they should be busy." Sasori explained. "Even if they're not, I don't hear any animals or birds either. It's too quiet." He lifted a hand and attached chakra threads to Hiruko's tail. The tail slithered out from underneath his cloak and wedged between the crack in the gates, moving around just enough to break the hinges loose with a lonely clack and cling. Kakuzu acknowledged the clever action with a nod and pulled the doors open.

* * *

**A/N: Sorry for a long time without updating! I was going to update this more often for the holidays but I've finally got a break through on the plot to Dawn Cloud(other fanfic) so I worked on that. I was also drawings stuff for my Tumblr(15stepsdown) and Deviantart(same name). I'm a little guilty but I'm quite excited to get along with this one. You should know who's arc this is by now. **

**Nice to meet ya! Review if you'd like! Happy Holidays!**


	44. The Highly Esteemed Follower of Jashin

**The Highly Esteemed Follower of Jashin**

"Yes, yes, I've done it." The words came just above a whisper, as if reminding himself of a task to check off. "That's twenty now, or thirty-dammit!" A hand flew up into his hair and raked at it. A large object clattered against the floor and nearly blended in with the gentle glow of the red lights. He cursed to himself again. "Agh, I'm bad at keeping count, forgive me Lord-Jashin."

More mumbling came along and he kicked at the hand on the floor, sliding it against it's own flaking blood. The room was surrounded in bodies, all faced upwards with maniacal grins on their faces, staring at the ceiling as if they had just witnessed the sun reach down to them. He was the only one left alive, but it was at the cost of quite a few of his own. He sighed and cracked his shoulders, little pops emitted from his aching bones. No, it wasn't finished yet. He needed more, at least a hundred. If he didn't complete them within the year, he'd be damned.

"No fucking time to check, screw it." He groaned and slid back against the wall. "This sounded easier, but it's taking so much time..." He opened his eyes and stared at the face right next to him, dead sunken eyes staring him back, almost glaring. "What are you looking at? I'm trying, I'm trying, just keep your skin on. I'll set out again tomorrow. I'll aim for another twenty, how about that?"

* * *

A single gate creaked open, revealing a courtyard at the front of a large shinto temple. _Bloodbath_, was the first word to come to Sasori's head, and it wouldn't have been random either. Bodies were littered across the floor, some of them hacked to pieces while others would have appeared to be unwounded if it weren't for the pool of blood it laid in. The corpses littered the area, many of them appearing to be monks due to their shaved heads.

Both Akatsuki advanced onto the scene. Sasori paused to inspect one of the bodies. This one had been cut in half crudely, the only thing keeping the torso and hips together was the spine, the only part of the body that managed to survive the attack, but not without a nick taken off of it. Sasori had Hiruko reach out and touch the crimson pool, slightly interested to find that it was liquid, and perhaps still warm. He withdrew from the body and turned Kakuzu. "This one's fresh."

"It seems like they all are." The miser agreed and scanned over the mass killing. Scattered throughout the corpses was a familiar symbol drawn in what appeared to be blood, a smeared red circle with a triangle in the middle, each corner meeting the lines of the circle. Kakuzu stared at it. Why did it look familiar? Had he seen it before? Definitely, but where? He pushed the thought to the back of his mind. "You think the one who killed them is still here?"

"Maybe, I can't tell how fresh it is." Sasori rolled Hiruko's head. "I can't gauge temperature like the rest of you can."

"That's right, you're wooden." Kakuzu sighed and advanced towards the shinto temple, a massive wooden staircase at the base of the structure. No symbols had been drawn on the stairs. Perhaps drawing one here was too much of a bother?

"Some sort of Jashinist joke?" Sasori suggested as he emerged at the top of the stairs. "Does Leader already know this happened?"

"He didn't tell me about it." Kakuzu blinked, then turned to Sasori as the entered the first room within the temple. "What's that word you said?"

"What word?" Sasori paused.

"That one. Some...something's joke."

"Jashinist?"

"Yeah, that one." Kakuzu thought for a moment. "It's been a long time since I've heard it. I'm surprised you know about it, aren't you a bit young?"

"I found out about it a few years ago when I doing research with Orochimaru." Sasori stiffened at the name, as if just muttering it would summon the sannin. "We were looking into historical methods of immortality and stumbled upon a religion known as Jashinism."

"Oh, I see."

The two ventured further into the temple, seemingly getting into the thick of the bodies. They were more concentrated now. Into a corridor, Sasori found a decorated gold-painted door and pushed it open, revealing several monk corpses in a line underneath a giant Buddha statue. Their legs were folded, as if they had been killed while meditating. Sasori steered Hiruko closer and noticed a line of Jashinist symbols, each one directly behind a monk. When he counted them, there were a total of seven symbols and seven corpses. A sacrifice? Likely.

Sasori wandered closer towards the statue and gazed up at it's beauty, only to find his hopes dashed to see the age-old Buddha statue smeared in bloody symbols and graffiti all over it's meditating form. It's nose and face had been scraped and broken off, defaced. Sasori couldn't help but feel some anger bubble within his chest. "Horrible. Destroying such art."

"Now it's worth even less." Kakuzu interjected. "Typical of them, it's in their nature."

"You've met one before?" Sasori turned to him curiously.

"Yeah, years ago. They were known for their violent tendencies. They used human sacrifices to prove their loyalty to their god so they were avoided whenever possible." Kakuzu gazed up at the statue. "This takes me back..."

Sasori frowned. "I would have thought they'd have some more appreciation for eternal beauty. Weren't they immortal?"

"That's a common misconception." Kakuzu shook his head. "They weren't much stronger than the regular shinobi really. Some people just thought they were immortal due to their lack of fear towards death. I once saw one with blades sunk into his entire torso and he laughed until he died."

Hiruko backed away from the statues. "That's why it failed for us huh?"

"There _is_ some truth to it though." Kakuzu recaptured the puppeteer's attention. "There really were some immortals among them, but they were priests. No matter how many times you slice'em, poison'em, whatever, they won't die, not unless they burned up in the flames of hell."

* * *

"Aah, where do I go today?" He whined and rubbed his eyes. He made a grab for a long bladed weapon and dragged it across the floor towards the exit. Once the switch flipped off, the room was darkened once again. "Sucks without breakfast first thing in the morning. I guess I'll eat something. Where to go though? Did I punish everyone in the village? No, I don't think so."

* * *

"What does it say?"

Itachi set the papers down on the table and looked at his companion. "Witnesses say it's a him. Young, carrying a large bladed weapon. There are a lot of descriptions about his hair but it's generally light coloured and short."

Deidara pushed off the wall. "Then where do we start?"

"I don't know yet. These are the only witness files I've been given access to. They're all from the night the massacre took place." He leafed through the sheets as if to prove there was little of value in them. The papers were slipped back into their envelope and left on the table where they found it.

"Are we out of luck?" The younger thought out loud.

_Itachi. _

Itachi abruptly paused all movement and listened, a familiar voice ringing in his head. The blond blinked curiously, then moved closer to the other and waved a hand over his face to capture the Uchiha's attention.

"What's wrong?"

He snapped out of his trance and frantically glanced around the sparse room. "Did you...did you hear something?"

Deidara squinted and tilted is head. The boy pondered the question for a second, but came up with nothing. "No, not really."

_It's me, Pein._

"Oh, it's Leader." Itachi's wary face fell, but still remained stiff. "But, how is he talking to me?"

"It's a communication system." Deidara cleared up the confusion. His face was monotone but on the inside, he felt a joyous feeling to have to explain something to the raven. "It's because you're wearing the ring, Leader can talk to you when you're not at the tower."

The thirteen-year old took a moment to absorb the information, lifting his hand to look at his crimson ring fitted on his right ring finger. If he focused, he could feel an energy pulsing from it. The ring warmed as another voice rung inside his skull.

_Now that you understand, I want to give you some info that Kakuzu and Sasori recently gathered on their mission. _

"He has information from Sasori's team." Itachi notified the blond. Immediately, the boy jumped in surprise, eyes wide and perked to hear absolutely anything from his danna. He leaned forward, as if doing so would allow him to hear what the Akatsuki could hear.

_I sent them to a shinto temple to do a report there. As it turns out the monks were killed just recently, but the perpetrator seems to have left the area. It's a ghost temple now._

Itachi's face lit up at the news. "What other details are there? About the bodies, how they were killed?"

_So, you've learned about them? The Jashinists?_

He nodded. "An ancient cult?"

_Yes, their symbol was found all over the temple grounds. They couldn't tell how many people committed it, but they're leaning towards a group due to the mass homicide. _

"No, it's just one person." Itachi could practically feel their leader waiting for him to continue. It was strange, since he was forced to either stare at the wall or awkwardly at Deidara's face during the conversation. "The witness reports say it was one person who killed everyone in the sector."

_I'll relay that to Kakuzu. What else have you found out?_

He stood there for a moment and bit his cheek. "Nothing, nothing so far. We don't even know where to start searching."

_Don't you have his description?_

"Yes, but there a lot like him. Plus, we haven't found anyone with that physical description to possess a large weapon."

_I see, I'll have Zetsu do a search then. _

"Um, what do we do?"

_Just sit tight for now. You two will still be responsible for apprehending him. _

"Alright. Will you give us orders soon?"

_I will when something comes up. If I have nothing within the month, just head back to Amegakure. _

"I understand." Itachi kept an eye on his ring. The surface of the object seemed to cool down, and soon nothing but a faint pulse of chakra remained. He let his arm drop and looked at the blond.

"What'd he say?"

"Sasori's team arrived at a shinto temple, everyone there is dead. They found Jashinist symbols all over."

"There too?" Deidara crossed his arms. "Is it far away?"

"I didn't ask."

"So what do we do now?"

"He told me to sit tight until further orders. If nothing comes up within the month, we're supposed to head to the tower." Itachi gestured for him to follow into the hallway. The midday sun maintained a light glow to the white walls and clean wooden floors, betraying the mood of the events that had taken place.

Deidara stuck his hands in his pockets and tailed the Uchiha out the door of the office into the widely empty street. No one really stuck around the thick of the village mid-day, since everyone seemed to occupied in the hot springs. Deidara never liked hot springs, they were hard to breath in and were often filled with naked older men. Sasori had once suggested he relax at one while the puppeteer worked on his art. He'd never tried one before so he agreed just for the heck of it, and returned to the workshop almost immediately.

"I can do whatever I want now right?" Deidara asked.

"I guess. He just said wait so we shouldn't leave yet." Itachi shrugged, not quite sure himself.

"...I'm taking a walk." The boy turned on his heel and started for the exit. He felt no need to stick around Itachi if he didn't need to.

* * *

He found his way to a nice little isolated pond near the village. The water was crystal clear, revealing the sandy bottom and the little smooth stones that piled at the corners of the bed. Water lilies shifted and drifted, carried along by the weak current of the passing Koi fish, gold, black, orange, and white splotched scales making for a nice calming scene. Deidara sat by the pond in the grass. Of course he knew the pond probably belonged to the village, he doubted a place like this could exist without the help of human beings.

All that was left to do now and quell his own boredom. Sasori wasn't around, so Deidara couldn't bother him about something. He plain didn't want to return to Itachi and training was out of the question since his explosions would disturb the villagers.

Deidara sighed and pulled out a small thin scroll from his robe. Sasori had sealed it for him so he always had his belongings on hand. Deidara looked over at the plainly coloured green scroll and rolled it open. He skipped over random weapons and stopped at the ringed kanji that read 'book'.

In a puff of smoke, a bright turquoise journal flopped into his lap, accompanied by a small pencil and eraser. Deidara put away the scroll and picked it up the spine, noting the rough edges of the pages within as well as the fluffy corners of the cardboard cover. For the past three years, he'd been using this book whenever he got bored. He skimmed over his old drawings with a shrill look and skipped to the blank pages, noting to himself how much space was left. He should probably ask to buy a new one.

Flipping to the emptiest page, he blinked and noticed a small crude sketch in the corner. It looked to be a bell, well shaded and laid on a flat surface, a still-life drawing. Next to the bell in the bottom right was some small writing.

_**It's a bell – Tobi**_

Deidara ignored the fact that Tobi was snooping through his belongings and admired the drawing for a while. _Whoa, I didn't know he could draw. _He drew a box around the bell and claimed the rest of the page as his own. Pressing the pencil to the paper, he stared blankly at the pond and lightly hovered his hand over the page again, imagining different things he could sketch onto the page.

Nothing.

"Why is this hard?" Deidara whined in frustration and wedged the pencil between the two pages. With time, his skills had improved a little bit, but drawing still didn't serve to get even close to being his main art medium.

* * *

"Hm?" He ducked down beneath the brush and spied through a break in the leaves. The village community pond was visible and empty, except for a lone stranger sitting by the tree, still, oblivious, alone. _Oh, this one's perfect. _He licked his lips and shifted his weapon, the glare of the sun flashed white against his blade.

* * *

With little but a faint rustle, Deidara noticed as a shadow darted across the ground from behind to his front. On instinct, he shot up and whirled around to catch a glimpse of a silhouette just under the sun with a brightly glaring weapon held over his head. The newcomer grew a wide grin and brung down the massive blade, planting it into the floor just an inch from the blond's nose.

Deidara bounded back and tucked his book under his armpit and returned his gaze to his attacker. The stranger rose from his crouched position and yanked the three bladed scythe from the floor. He didn't look much older than Itachi, slicked back grey hair and a cocky smirk written on his features. The scythe swung over his shoulder, unbelievably large compared to his seemingly average frame. Deidara remained silent and rose with him, making it a point to show no fear towards his new opponent.

"Why so down?" The new comer asked with a hint of arrogance in his voice. Deidara maintained his silence, wiping the smirk from the stranger's face.

The new boy raised a brow and began to size up the other, scanning his eyes over his body, scrutinizing every single detail to the point that the blond began to shift his weight uncomfortably. _Why's he looking at me like that?_ The young bomber tightened his hold on his book, sweating slightly under the stranger's gaze. It took a few seconds until the newcomer revealed another cocky grin and ended his scrutiny. Deidara noticed a flash of mischief in his purple eyes, a stranger colour at all to boot.

"So you're a ninja from Iwagakure eh? You're quite a ways from home!" He practically teased him. "Such young children shouldn't be wandering these parts." He chuckled and grabbed the beaded necklace hanging from his neck to hold to his lips.

_Wait._ Deidara blinked and squinted at the object. The pendant seemed to be quite regular, if not for the unusual crimson symbol hanging on its thread. A circle with an inverted triangle, exactly like the one described by the kunoichi yesterday. _I see, so this is a Jashinist._ Deidara took the chance while the stranger mumbled under his breath, eyes closed in prayer to check his features. Male, grey hair counted as light and it was short, young, carrying a bladed weapon, seemed to fit all of the witness descriptions.

_This is our guy. _

The koi fish picked up the pace, alert to the slightest vibration. The Jashinist finally ended his mumbling and opened his eyes, a new found determination in his irises. "Luckily, Lord Jashin welcomes you as his next sacrifice." His voice was low but just loud enough to hear. The serious expression flitted to one of utter excitement and shouted, "NOW STAY STILL LIKE A GOOD LITTLE HEATHEN!"

He threw his heavy scythe onto the floor and began to charge towards Deidara, dragging the blade against the floor. The blond had no intention of standing there and hopped out of range to land on a nearby tree branch. Deidara kept a calm expression and passed his book to his other hand, using his free one to make his signature seal.

"Oi! Don't run away!" The Jashinist halted and waved his scythe in the air like a flag. "Don't be a coward! Get down!"

"Capture complete." Deidara murmured.

"Eh!? What was that? I didn't quite hear you!" The stranger practically screamed and cupped a hand behind his ear. "Speak up you little pansy!"

_Pansy!? _Deidara could practically feel a vein-pop from his head. His expression faltered but he insisted on keeping cool and calm to imitate his master. He grit his teeth as a dangerous glint flashed in his eye but continued to resist blowing the teenager to pieces.

"You just wait up there! I'll get you-" The young Jashinist moved to strike at the blond only to feel his leg refuse. Only now did he notice the feeling of something wrap around his ankle and up his thigh, slithering further up his torso. He glanced down to find a weird white bug coiled around his body, seemingly emerged from the ground. "Ew! What's this!?"

"You're lucky I can't kill you." Deidara frowned and commanded the centipede to coil even further.

The teenager growled and forced a smirk. "You think something so simple could hold me?"

"No, but these will." Deidara hopped off the branch just as two clay snakes burst from the floor and entangled both of the Jashinist's arms. Its prisoner wriggled against the binds but only continued to be held down, one snake forcing his arm to bend backwards and eventually drop the triple bladed scythe.

The Jashinist sent a dark glare towards the young bomber. "Fuck you!"

"Don't close your eyes in front of the opponent, a very basic rule." Now it was the blond's turn to smirk, rather satisfied with his work. "Itachi should credit me after this."

* * *

"Are you sure it's him?" The kunoichi asked and circled the prisoner, currently bind in three clay centipedes enforced with some extra snakes for security. The Jashinist growled and spat in the woman's face, who immediately backed off.

Deidara shrugged and turned to Itachi beside him, currently standing by the wall of the small room. The Uchiha was also seemingly astonished by the capture, never expecting the blond of all Akatsuki to find the culprit. Then again, it was a coincidence, so anyone could say it was luck. The Jashinist grumbled in his throat, then threw his glare over to the blond, scrutinizing his physical appearance yet again. In response, the child shifted uncomfortably again and turned the other cheek. "He fits the description."

"Yes, he certainly does." She locked spiteful gazes with the prisoner. "I recognize him too. Hidan from the Yugakure academy, though it's been turned into a regular school now."

The statement triggered Hidan who opened his mouth to interject only to have a snake wrap around his head and hold him off from any comments. He screamed in muffles, then paused to gauge his own reaction to the taste of the snake before writhing on the spot out of disgust for the taste of clay. "Erw! Wha i dis!?"

Deidara crossed his arms disapprovingly, clay didn't taste that bad, just takes a bit of getting used to. Itachi ignored the blond and moved to address the kunoichi. "Are we done here?"

"The search ended up being a lot shorter than anyone expected." She hummed for a moment, tormenting the Jashinist with a thoughtful gaze as she tapped her chin. "Yes, you're dismissed. You're mission is over, thank you."

Itachi nodded to the younger and both made their way to the door. Deidara blinked and turned back to the prisoner and the kunoichi. "What abou-"

"We can cut them off when we're ready. Just leave."

She spoke in a tone that told him that word was final. The boy blinked a couple more times and followed after the raven out the exit. In the hallway, Itachi quietly closed the door and immediately made a B-line for the lobby. Deidara hesitantly followed, but his mind wasn't quite off the mission yet.

"Itachi."

"What?" He muttered, not even turning to face the other child.

"I think there's still something not quite right here."

The statement caused the Uchiha to pause abruptly, almost causing the blond to crash into him. Deidara stumbled back and looked up to meet a sceptical gaze.

"It doesn't matter, the mission's over." Itachi spoke flatly. "You've done our job, we've captured who the village thinks is the killer, we're done here."

"You're not getting the point, that's not what I mean."

"What is it then?" Itachi sighed.

"That guy." Deidara weighed his words carefully, attempting to find the right way to word his troubles. "Don't you think it's a little strange? Pein sent Sasori no danna and Kakuzu to a Shinto temple only to have the temple coincidentally be the place of the second massacre?"

"He was helping us from the beginning, those two as well."

"Yeah but" He paused, "Never mind."

Itachi nodded and turned back for the exit, subordinate in toe. The younger stared at the floor, hand mouths swirling around the insides of his palms at the anxiety of their host. _Still, that ended too quickly. I don't believe I got lucky._

* * *

_Sasori, Kakuzu, Itachi has finished his mission early this time. They'll be meeting with you shortly at the base in this country. Before that, I have another task for you. Go to Yugakure and retrieve the prisoner to bring to the rendezvous, then wait for further orders._

* * *

"Danna!"

Sasori heard the shell of Hiruko creak from the added weight. From the outside, Deidara had hopped onto the puppet's back, grinning from ear to ear, completely oblivious to the irked stare that Kakuzu sent them. Itachi gazed over the scene and stood silently in the empty room, the sliding doors just open a bit with the miser standing idly, part of his body obscured by the door. The other child clambered onto the large puppet's back and sat cross-legged on it with his hands pressed to Hiruko's cloak, staring past the wood directly at his master with an excited smile.

It amazed Itachi how Deidara's character would change so quickly, especially in the presence of the puppeteer. He'd met people like him, but in a place like this, he hadn't expected to see any more of them.

"Get off brat, it's only been two days." Sasori grumbled and shook off the eleven-year old.

"I doubt Yugakure will want our services anymore." Kakuzu started, earning a curious look from Itachi.

"Why?" He asked.

Kakuzu stepped out form the sliding door and threw something, or someone onto the floor to present to them all. Both children blinked, Deidara specifically was quick to freak out at the very sight of the thing by yelping in surprise. The miser glared at the teenager and revealed a three-bladed scythe in his hands, still in pristine condition.

"Oi! Be a little more careful would ya! You're handling an esteemed follower of Lord Jashin!" Hidan rolled onto his back and shouted.

_W-what the hell is he doing here? _Deidara backed away, eyes trained solely on the teenager.

_Huh?_ Itachi felt slightly confused.

Sasori commanded Hiruko forward a few steps and shoved the teenager into a sitting position with his tail. He turned towards the two children and began to explain. "We were told Itachi finished, so then Leader ordered us to retrieve him and bring him here. Why? Don't ask me."

"Oi! LISTEN TO ME!"

"So, you just stole him?" Deidara asked.

"Basically." Sasori replied.

"_TURN YOUR HEADS MY WAY YOU HEATHENS!_"

"What do we do with him?" Itachi asked next.

"Leader said to wait for further orders." Hiruko grumbled and lowered itself onto the floor.

_ "LORD JASHIN WILL PUNISH YOU FOR YOUR INSOLENCE!_"

"_**Shut up.**_" Kakuzu snarled and swung the scythe towards the loudmouth, successfully separating his head from his body. Everyone else snapped to stare at the scene, head plopped onto the floor accompanied by a spray of fresh blood.

The room went dead silent as Kakuzu relaxed, acting as if nothing had been committed. Deidara cursed under his breath and backed closer to the puppeteer, putting more distance between himself and the miser. Itachi thought of the same, but kept his eyes trained on the decapitated body as if slumped onto the wooden floor.

_Shit!_ Sasori felt the panic rise within him. _Now what?_

* * *

**A/N: Probably the longest name I've ever had for a chapter. **


	45. You're no god!

**You're No God!**

"_LORD JASHIN WILL PUNISH YOU FOR YOUR INSOLENCE!_"

"_Shut up._" Kakuzu stomped and swung the scythe towards the loudmouth, successfully slicing his head from his body. Everyone else snapped to stare at the scene, head flying through the air slowly before plopping onto the wooden floor, followed by a spray of blood.

The room went dead silent as Kakuzu relaxed, acting as if nothing had been committed. Deidara cursed under his breath and backed closer to the puppeteer, putting more distance between himself and the miser. Itachi thought of the same, but kept his eyes trained on the decapitated body as if slumped onto the wooden floor.

_Shit!_ Sasori felt the panic rise within him. Kakuzu had just killed Hidan, just at the midst of the mission. Now what? What would he tell leader? What kind of excuse could justify this? Well, quite a few actually, some reasons involving Kakuzu's short fuse and the culprit's inability to remain quiet. Even then, Pein had already implied the possibility of this now dead Jashinist to be a person of interest. If he was truly important, Sasori could only hope to hope that their leader was feeling merciful.

"_Pah!_" Blood spurted from the head's mouth, accompanied by a voice that made everyone freeze.

Deidara watched in mild horror as the decapitated head began to jerk on the spot as it's expression twisted and scrunched up, eyes widening as it continued to try and clear his mouth from the blood. "Ack! Agh! AAAAH! That hurts! That hurts! That hurts!"

Both children exchanged glances, able to share of a small moment of empathy. Kakuzu raised a brow and turned towards the head, approaching it fearlessly while the others preferred their current spots in the room. He leaned the scythe against the wall and stared down at Hidan, inspecting him. "How the hell are you alive?"

"I'm immortal you dumbas-"

_THUMP_

By now, the blond had averted his gaze, attempting to forget the fact that Kakuzu had just kicked the head like a soccer ball into the wall, undoubtedly spraying blood further around the room. Itachi paled, his own skull felt light, and a bit dizzy.

"OW! WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FOR!?" Hidan screeched.

Kakuzu expression blackened. "First, I'm not the dumbass here. Second, immortality? You're too young for that honour. What are you? Twelve?"

"I'm fourteen for your information." Hidan grumbled. "And what's with this treatment eh? I demand you put me back on my body right now! Lord-Jashin commands it!"

"Like a whiny little brat like you could order me around." The miser spat and stomped on the fourteen-year old's head, grinding it into his cheek.

Sasori observed the scene for a few moments. This was dragging on for a while, they needed to move on already. Immortality in and of itself intrigued him greatly, but for now, they were wasting time. "Kakuzu, just reattach his head. Don't argue with him."

"Keh, fine." The Akatsuki member visibly frowned underneath his mask and stepped off the teenager to grab his head. He sauntered over to the body which was being pulled upright with the puppeteer's chakra threads. Deidara hesitantly returned to the scene, relaxing slightly to see that the head and body had been reunited, forming a full person again. It didn't disturb him much anymore to see dead and dismembered bodies, but to see it still moving served to send a chill up his spine.

Hidan smiled once he was propped back up, able to just barely move his muscles again. "Ah, that's better-ow!" Something punctured the skin in his neck and wriggled around, piercing his neck wound and winding down into the bottom half before breaking the skin on the other side and repeat. "Ow! What are you doing?"

"What? You expect your head to stay on like metal to a magnet? I'm sewing it back on." Kakuzu muttered, carefully observing the thick black thread coil around the separated skin.

"Oh, is that it?" Hidan pushed his lip out. "Well, I'd like my scythe too, so give it to me."

_He's...quite rude._ Itachi commented in his mind. He glanced over at the other two, only to see from Deidara's dreadful expression that he was probably thinking the same.

"Hey, you there! Old man!" Hidan pointed directly at Sasori, causing him to jump a little. "Give me my scythe!"

"What? No." The redhead said adamantly.

"Eh?" The Jashinist was noticeably loud, unable to make even a subtle puzzled sound, his voice ringing in everyone's ears. He scanned the room and steered his finger at Itachi. "You then! Give me my scythe!"

Itachi stared with eyes wide. It must have looked like he was too shocked to answer, for after a few seconds in silence passed, Hidan turned his eyes onto Deidara, piercing gaze serving to send another chill running up his spine.

"Then you, you're pretty, be a good girl and give me my scythe on the wall over there."

_P-pretty?_ Deidara nearly choked on his own spit, paling. Pretty? He partially understood after some reflection over the years why others sometimes thought was female since he was young but pretty? That never occurred to him, and he certainly didn't like the implications of such a label either.

Sasori blinked a couple of times at the statement. Pretty? Youths knowing each other was quite normal, but something about that comment rubbed him the wrong way. His subordinate was only eleven after all, what kind of activities had Deidara been participating in to earn this? He swung Hiruko's head towards the blond expectantly. In this situation, it would be kind of unnecessary, but would he have to start planning how to explain the birds and bees now? Sasori sort of planned on holding off such a talk for as long as possible.

"Well? You gonna be silent too?" Hidan urged on an answer.

"U-um, I'm a boy." Deidara pointed to himself while forcing himself to be polite. The only way to hold in his anger would be to do the exact opposite.

The Jashinist squinted and stared, irking the other. Suddenly, his eyes went down to his chest, immediately causing the blond to spin around and cross his arms. The fourteen-year old took a few moments to mull around with an idea before he seemed to have conclusion. "No way, you're just flat-chested."

A vein popped.

_BOOM_

* * *

"Deidara, I want to talk to you for a second."

Said child turned away from his conversation with Konan to see the puppeteer beckon to him from a corner, probably staying out of sight from the other members. They were at the tower at the moment. After the explosion, everyone had to move to Amegakure in order keep both Deidara and Hidan on a rope. Konan made a small smile and walked away, disappearing in the hall.

The boy made his way over to the puppeteer, who leaned over slightly to ruffle his hair. Deidara pressed his lips together anxiously, was he going to get scolded? He had made the trip difficult after all, with all of the threats to bomb Hidan for every single inappropriate comment he made. The trip took two extra days longer than it should have. For now, they were allowed a full day to recuperate before they would meet with Pein. "W-what is it?"

"Actually, let's go to my studio." Sasori gestured for the boy to follow and started for the corridor, child in toe.

Once they arrived, Deidara took a seat on the bed while Sasori pulled up a chair to sit on. He fiddled nervously, he could barely read the puppeteer's stoic expression. Normally, he could do so easily but whenever he couldn't, the only thing that came to his mind was that the redhead was pissed about something.

Sasori stared at the floor for a moment, then brought his gaze to meet the younger. "I think it's time I gave you the talk."

"The...talk?" Deidara blinked and cocked his head.

"Yes, since I've observed that you and Hidan have...relations, I've decided to educate you on the reproductive system and intimacy."

"_HUH?_" Deidara visibly panicked and began to wave his arms wildly. "NO! NO! NO! I DON'T LIKE HIM!"

Now it was Sasori's turn to blink. Hold on, he'd prepared so much during the trip to have this conversation and now the brats refusing him? No, that should be normal. No one wants to talk about this stuff anyways. "Deidara, I know it's a bit scary, but you can safely confid-"

"Danna! No! It's not like that! He just got the idea out of nowhere!" The child crossed his arms over his chest in an 'X' dramatically and backed up against the wall, face as red as tomato.

"Fine then, it doesn't have to be about you two. Regardless, we're starting." Sasori stood up despite protests and wheeled a large chalk board covered in a black tarp towards the bed. A look of horror washed over the blond's face, knowing exactly what was coming. It wasn't like he didn't know what the talk was, but he knew for a fact that it was some seriously squeamish stuff. "Just try to keep a straight face."

"NOOO!"

"Now, when a man and woman love each other very much..."

* * *

"Everyone has gathered." Pein entered the room, half of his face shadowed over in the dark room, just barely lit with the small streams of sunlight that made it through the thick clouds.

The member filed into the room, each one being present, they would not need to use the astral projection technique. Silhouettes flickered in a circle around a small lit shrine in the middle of the room. Pein cast his gaze over the space, noting the arrival of Kisame, Zetsu and the others who had just arrived. Kakuzu had managed to arrive by shoving Hidan in front of him, eventually throwing him into the middle of the circle by the shrine. Pein thought little of it. He was aware of the teenager's abilities. For this meeting, he would be making plenty of exceptions.

The door swung a little wider to reveal Hiruko's lumbering form moving into the room. Pein immediately wedged passed the other members and approached him, needing no introduction to gain his attention. "Sasori, where is Deidara?"

"He's in my studio." Sasori swung Hiruko's head to gesture towards the hall.

"Can you bring him? I will make an exception this time."

"But...I'll be late." Sasori grumbled.

"That's fine, we'll wait." Pein nodded towards the door and sent the puppeteer to retrieve his underling, then turned to addressed the already assembled members. Returning to his spot, he noticed the glare of a certain newcomer searing into his head. Pein paused and glanced at the Jashinist from the corner of his ringed eye, a few seconds passing before he broke it off and continued.

"Hey! Who the hell are you!? You're eyes are weird!" Hidan barked, earning a knock to the head by Kakuzu.

"I could say the same to you." Pein replied smoothly. "I've never seen someone with purple eyes before."

Hidan opened his mouth snap but received a headlock in return, choking his face blue. The miser growled. "It's rare, but that just means has the potential to be immortal. There were more like him when Jashinism was popular."

"You've had experience?" Pein asked, interested.

"Yeah, when I was young." Kakuzu let go of the teenager to let him breath at the very least. "It used to be a prominent cult back during the warring states period. I lived to see the very last of them during the first war."

_Creak_

The door to the room opened a bit more to reveal Hiruko again, following closely behind was Deidara, peering past the puppeteer the meeting curiously. With his segmented tail, Sasori quietly closed the door and beckoned the child over to his spot next to Pein. The child understandably held some fear towards the organization leader, but managed to take a deep breath and approach him without cowering. The ginger gave the boy a nonchalant look, then returned to the group.

"Recently, I've been scouting for new members to fill in the gaps in the Akatsuki. Just a few days ago, I sent Itachi and Deidara"

_He mentioned me. _The blond blinked and felt his pride swell a little at the recognition. As far as he's known from previous meetings, it was always the organization member who was mentioned, not the ones who worked with them unless it was necessary. This was the first time he had ever been named as a real part of the team.

"to Yugakure on their request to apprehend the perpetrator of a mass homicide."

"I'm guessing this is the guy, isn't he?" Kisame chuckled and gestured towards Hidan.

Pein nodded. "Yes, that's him. From here on, he will join our family."

He's staying!? Deidara made a surprised expression. He wasn't alone, for soon enough, some murmuring rose around the circle. Some members seemed interested, like their signature swordsman who was currently whispering to Zetsu. On the other hand, there were some who appeared to oppose it, such as Kakuzu who was coloured speechless.

Hidan sneered at the name. Family? What was that supposed to mean? This obviously was anything but a family. He warily looked around at the other members, then finally rose from his knelt position. Stripped of his scythe, he didn't expect anyone to give him his prized possession now. _Who the hell are these guys? _

"Hidan."

The teenager snapped to attention, only to find that Pein was not looking at him, instead addressing the others. "That is his name. I'm sure some of you have already gotten a taste of his abilities."

Finally, ringed eyes landed on him. "From here on, you will work solely with the Akatsuki. I am Pein, I am god, but you shall call me leader."

The chatter softened and died, leaving all the members to stare, acknowledging his words be it honestly or simply to get by. Hidan almost felt their gazes, how they seemed to have some sort of respect for this man. Respect. They were wasting it. They didn't know who truly deserved respect. God? Who was this usurper to call themselves a god? Truly, they didn't know who was a god and who wasn't. A grin crept over his face, a strange feeling welling up his stomach and rose up to his lungs, up to his neck until he could hold it in no longer.

Suddenly, he blurted out, his cry of laughter serving to deafen all within the room. His head flopped back, eyes directed towards the ceiling. To the common observer, the Jashinist would have looked possessed, which wouldn't have been completely wrong either. Hidan's laughter faltered for a moment as he tried to gain his breath, but it broke out again in the dead silent room, doubling over and holding his stomach.

"_GOD!? GOD!? YOU CALL YOURSELF A GOD?_" Hidan screeched, pointing accusingly at Pein. "_YOU'RE NO GOD, YOU'RE JUST A FUCKING PHONY!_" His laughter seemed to slow for a moment as he cast his scrutinizing gaze over the Akatsuki members and caught his breath. "_Look at these idiots! All of them! Hailing you as their leader huh?_" His grin fell into a low scowl. _"I'll tell you who's the true god! Lord Jashin! That's who! Not a weird piercing guy like you! Dumbfuck!_"

Deidara took a hesitant step back and warily gauged their leader's expression. This wasn't good, he'd never seen anyone talk to the Akatsuki head like that before. Even now, he clearly remembered witnessing a little bit of power during the fight with Orochimaru. Back then, he was just repelling a defector. How would he react in anger?

"_LORD JASHIN IS THE ONE AND ONLY TRUE GOD!" Hidan shrieked. "MY ABILITIES? HE GRANTED ME ETERNAL LIFE! IMMORTALITY! WHAT CAN YOU DO? EH?_"

"Pein." Konan muttered under her breath.

The ginger remained silent, watching the lowly fourteen-year old rant on. From what it looked like, he was testing Kakuzu's patience the most, but the miser seemed to choose holding back. He didn't blame him. Would it be wise to move now? Pein sent Konan a reassuring look. "It's fine."

Pein didn't break his expression, simply looking on. Hidan was left heaving by the time his rant was over, doubled over and sweating. Such determination, such defiance, certainly something he'd never seen before. The question remained however. Would it be an easy task to control him?

"You want to know true pain?" Hidan grinned and heaved again. "Give me my scythe, and I'll show you. We will suffer together with Lord Jashin."

"True pain?" The Akatsuki leader gazed up at the clouds outside of the room, the sunlight just beginning to fade out as darker rain clouds gathered. "What would an insolent child like you know about pain?" He lowered his gaze again, cold dead eyes serving to freeze Hidan. "Make no mistake, I am aware of the god you speak of. The pain you speak of, that is not true pain. That is mortal pain, bodily pain, a temporary pain that strikes at you but can heal or comfort you with death." Pein took a confident step forward and sauntered past the other members. "True pain is something that cannot heal. It only goes on and on. A scar that lasts forever. The death of a loved one, betrayal, rejection, all those things are possible causes of true pain. If bodily pain is true pain, then why would a parent gladly take torture in the place of their child and vice versa?"

Sasori frowned. He could only think of one thing in that very moment.

* * *

_Konan blinked as her arm was shoved aside harshly. Sasori watched in horror as his subordinate darted in front of him and held both arms out protectively. Deidara's face twisted in in a desperate manner, a bead of sweat rolling down his forehead as it remained only a two or so feet away from the dangerous point of the rod. _

_ Pein's gaze fell to the little child and his frown deepened. "You too?"_

_ The other members observed the scene quite unlike any they've ever seen before. A subordinate had the nerve to come up and defend their master in the face of Amegakure's god? What kind of foolish act was that? With no plan, and definitely far below the rain ninja in skill. What did the clay artist hope to do? _

_ "What are you doing? Brat?" Sasori hissed. _

_ Deidara ignored his master's comment and stood firmly in front of him, locking a weak glare towards his leader. His legs trembled, body shivering in absolute fear in front of the Akatsuki founder. Regardless, he remained and gulped. "I don't know what danna did, but I'll take his punishment!"_

_ If even possible, the already silent Akatsuki fell deeper into the gloom, all eyes falling on the reckless blond. Konan's mask broke and her face fell, tempted to step in and do something. Pein didn't falter, then spoke warningly. "Sasori's punishment is death. Do you want to die?"_

_ The corners of Deidara's mouth curled into a forced smile. "You know, I didn't know how I wanted to die, but now, I know I want to die for my master. Itachi asked me how far I would go for Sasori no danna. This is as far as I go. Yeah, this is it."_

* * *

He felt so useless. He couldn't help but want to believe death was comforting at that time. That whatever pain was coming his way, it would be momentary, and at the very least, he could die embracing the only thing that meant anything to him at the time. Sasori thought death was like a deep sleep, you would feel nothing, be aware of no one. A final rest where all one's accomplishments in life ultimately meant nothing but how you die, how you feel when you die, how one's death impacts others.

Otherwise, if Sasori thought of anything else, it would have been that this child had quite the filthy mouth, and a less than desirable vocabulary.

"A load of...bullshit." Hidan stammered. Something about this guy, he didn't know what but it irritated him to no end.

"Hidan, welcome to the Akatsuki. Perhaps you do not understand yet, but our purpose to eliminate such pain. We are an organization that will bring true peace to the world, to all people on it." A flurry of birds escaped a lower area of the building, flashing by the outside of the room and caused Pein's shadow to flicker against the wall. "Where the sufferings in life are no longer a reality. You have no say in joining us. I, as god, command you to."

"_Isn't he charismatic?_" Zetsu snickered. That face that Hidan wore, it was priceless! He could barely hold in his laughter. Well, Pein did have that kind of effect on people anyways.

"I will have you know, you are not the only immortal in this organization. We have quite the pioneer really." The Akastuki leader gestured behind him.

"Another...immortal?" Hidan raised a brow and followed his gaze, eventually falling on Kakuzu who simply huffed and turned away. "So you're immortal too?"

"Kakuzu, he will be your new partner."

"What?"

The miser barely received a chance to say anything else for Pein had already turned to the others. "This meeting is over, dismissed."

Immediately, the members began to stir and walk in different directions, all eventually would turn to the door and leave. The Astral projection users with flicker out and continue their daily activities as usual, but Kakuzu would have none of it. "Hold on! You never told me about this!"

"I never told you because I knew you would object." Pein explained simply. "Just take it as it is. Don't lose him either, I will know."

"But...but..." Kakuzu grumbled and turned a hateful gaze over to the zealot. "No way, you know what I'll do, I'll sell him for his bounty."

"He doesn't have one." Pein mentioned all too casually for the miser's comfort. "He was never recorded with a high bounty, so you will be rewarded with nothing for killing him." He paused. "Which you cannot, fortunately."

"No way, this is just stupid. Putting me up with a brat like this?" Kakuzu growled.

"Hey, who are you calling a brat!?" Hidan barked and bashed his fist into the masked man's back, only to find it the equivalent of hitting a brick wall.

Itachi watched the scene from afar as the teenager cupped his swollen hand. His new partner took the chance to knock him on the head, successfully breaking it off the threads and leaving his body lifeless yet again while the disembodied head began to screech at him. So this was the new guy?

* * *

**A/N: Before anyone asks, the 'pretty' thing is comedic. This ain't no romance fic. **


	46. Daily Life

**Daily Life**

"So he's joining too?" Deidara swung his legs back and forth on his bed, eyeing the puppeteer working carefully at the table.

The puppeteer retracted from the body, stomach cavity currently cut wide open. Sasori thought for a moment, his face slightly shadowed by the overhanging light above the operating table while he tapped his chin. "Yes, but I don't know if he's got the ring yet."

Deidara seemed to be delighted by this news and hopped off the bed. The puppeteer continued to work and carefully dug out the organs he didn't need, cutting off their arteries, veins, and other parts he couldn't preserve. Next to the table was a large black laundry basket with a plastic bag pulled over it. Inside, one could see a large collection of organs, the heart, lungs, and some other bodily pieces were placed inside. Once he had the large intestine removed, he began to slide it off the table into the bag. The little boy sauntered up to the table and rested his chin on it, watching his danna do his work.

"If they don't have a ring, can they get kicked out?" Deidara asked. He leaned forward to get a better look only to have a splatter of blood get in his eye and cheek. The boy flinched and stumbled back, raising a sleeve to wipe off the liquid.

Sasori turned to grab a small white rag and returned to the child. He grasped his arm before it could get to his face, simply wiping off the blood on his lid and under his eye with the cloth. It wasn't good to rub it off, since mixing blood could lead to blood poisoning. "Technically yes, but I doubt that's going to happen." He turned stood up and gestured towards the bathroom. "Go wash the rest off."

This earned him a small pout but Deidara complied, darting off to the sink to wash his face. Sasori could sigh, the little kid was always getting a little too close to his work. Sometimes he wondered if he should set some boundaries for whenever he removed organs. The redhead returned to the body, scooping out other parts he didn't need. The blood had been drained, but some still remained. He'd wash it out at the river later.

"Why?" He heard the blond yell from the bathroom.

"Kakuzu had four other partners before Hidan. He killed them shortly after they joined." Sasori raised his voice so Deidara could hear.

The light in the bathroom shut off, and Deidara emerged out of it, his bang slightly wet from the water. He glanced at his danna for a moment, then moved to an unprepared puppet draped on the floor. The child plopped down and began to play with the arms. Sasori watched his subordinate carefully from the corner of his eye. His puppets were pretty sturdy, so they wouldn't break so easily. Not only that, the puppet he was currently forcing to fight another puppet was incomplete, no weapons yet installed. He returned to his work and prepared to remove the brain. "Hidan cannot die, so that means Kakuzu has a permanent partner now."

"Eh?" Deidara moaned out loud. "What about me?"

"Hm?" Sasori placed the removed brain in the chest cavity for a moment and sealed up the head. He picked up the brain again and dropped it in the organs bag.

"How come they can join but not me?" Deidara complained, dropping the puppets and letting them slouch on each other in the corner. "I caught Hidan! I should be able to join!"

Sasori gauged the boy's expression. He remained silent and knelt by the laundry basket. He pulled the bag off the edges and began to tie it up in a large knot.

"Leader even mentioned me! Why am I the only one not in the Akatsuki!"

"Deidara, throw this out."

The blond paused and blinked. Sasori stood by the operation table, pointing towards the bag. A silence fell between them for a moment, then the puppeteer furrowed his eyebrows in slight frustration. "Did you understand? Throw. This. Out. For. Me."

"Hmph!" Deidara huffed and dragged himself dramatically towards the organ bag, brown eyes trained on his back. The boy made a pout towards the puppeteer, only to receive an unwavering stare back. From what it looked like, he couldn't drag it out any longer. With a loud sigh, Deidara made a small flat clay animal and dropped it on the floor. Making his signature seal, the animal grew five times its normal size, a strange lizard with a bowl for a body. Deidara grabbed the bag with both arms and hauled it over to the lizard, dropping it into its back.

Sasori put his hands on his hips, trying to be straightforward with the boy. "We've talked about this, Deidara. I don't care if-"

"Yeah, yeah I get it."

The puppeteer blinked, did the brat just interrupt him? Deidara waved his hand off to the puppeteer dismissively and sent him a strangely cold glare. Sasori's stoic face faltered for a moment, watching as the child had the lizard get up and start for he door.

"What did you say to me?" Sasori raised his voice, but the boy kept walking. He felt a twinge of annoyance. "Hey!"

Deidara visibly jumped in surprise, then slowly slunk he head to turn towards the puppeteer. Sasori held a slightly angry expression, crossing his arms over his chest. "Repeat to me what you just said."

The boy pressed his lips together, obviously fearful of the elder. His head was slightly bowed between his shoulders, highly aware of how long he had not answered for. Sasori began to tap his foot. He wouldn't let this slide. "Deidara..."

"...No."

Sasori paused, eyes widening in shock. Deidara averted his gaze quietly, and tried to resume his walk to the door. Sasori made a 'tch' sound and prepared to scold the little child for his disobedience, only to hear a loud bang behind the back wall. Both came to attention and stared at it, a strange silence falling after the sound.

"Did you-"

"It wasn't me this time!" Deidara retorted.

_CRASH_

The wall caved in as a body flew past both of them and slammed into the operating table, sending it towards the opposite wall. Deidara shielded his head both arms, finally letting them drop to take a look at the scene. The wall had been decimated, and within the room, he could feel himself freeze. In corner of the studio, his clay animal had been flipped onto its bag with its fat limbs clawing the air. The operating table had also been flipped over, now in a pile of rubble out in the hall with Hidan right in the middle of it. Not only that, but the force had torn the organ bag and the body Sasori was working on into pieces, whatever left now strewn across the floor.

Sasori stood on the other side, face stone cold. Deidara could practically feel the deadly aura waft off the puppeteer, radiating a dangerous intent. The blond sweated slightly and backed off.

"Agh! Kakuzu..." Hidan twitched and hauled himself off the operating table. His arm flew to his neck, cracking it a few time. "That hurt."

_Squish_

"Eh?" Hidan stared at his foot, finding it rested on what seemed to be a heart. The Jashinist stared at it for a moment, face blank. "What's thi-"

"_You..._"

Hidan blinked and gazed upwards, faced with a dark silhouette in front of the small rays of light of the outside. Gleaming eyes stared him down, not a single glint of mercy in them. Unable to catch the hint, the zealot blinked again and sized up the other. From what it looked like, this was an Akatsuki, but he didn't recognize him. "Who are you?"

Deidara watched as Sasori raised an arm, hand slipping out of his sleeve. The little metal tube inside his arm glinted in the light, and immediately, he knew it would not be wise to stay here.

"ARE DEAD!"

_DOOM_

* * *

Kisame paused and raised his head. Itachi noticed and did the same, able to catch a glimpse of some smoke rising from a hole in the Ame tower. The raven tilted his head and continued to observe a little longer. Out of the smoke emerged what appeared to be a bird with a small person on it. He couldn't guess it was Deidara.

"What...what happened?" Itachi followed the flight path of the little blond. The bird hovered just outside of the destruction, then began to fly circles around the tower.

"Beats me." Kisame shrugged. "Maybe Deidara blew something up."

"I thought he was forbidden from doing that here." Itachi cocked his head.

* * *

_Damn you Hidan!_ Deidara knelt on the bird's back and began to circle the tower. Past the air current in his ears, he could hear the strangled screams and Sasori's yelling inside. He sighed. Of course, what did he expect. The puppet master worked hard on every single puppet, so to have his workshop destroyed just like that, he couldn't expect mercy. Well, at least now he didn't have to argue with Sasori. Deidara didn't particularly like doing that, but he just felt a bit pissed today. After being mocked by the Jashinist and forced to go through 'the talk' with the puppeteer, he felt burnt out.

Suddenly, a rush of fire blasted from the back of the tower, throwing Hidan off the floor to plummet to what would be to anyone else, a certain death. Deidara paused and hovered, watching the flames die out and simply singe at the edges of the hole. Sasori stepped out, face blackened with rage.

Even if he was angry, the blond still thought it was kind of cool. He wished he could be that destructive when he was angry, but the most he could do was blast the hideout to pieces. He'd never seen it, but Deidara had a hunch that Sasori could do much more than that.

* * *

"Oh look, someone's falling." Itachi pointed out.

Kisame shielded his eyes from the rays that streamed through the clouds. They had just witnessed a stream of fire jet out of the tower and disperse, leaving a second hole. He had to squint but there was a tiny figure plummeting to the bottom, leaving a smoke trail. "Oh yeah, but it's not Deidara."

"I think" Itachi paused and narrowed his gaze. "That's Hidan."

"Really? How he get up there?"

* * *

Two Akatsuki watched from the mouth of a large statue, observing the destruction take place. Konan's cloak flapped slightly in the open air, the scent of smoke wafting in the wind. She turned to Pein. "We should do something. He's causing problems."

The Akatsuki leader stared past her, eyes trained on the newest organization member as he did a flip in the air and landed on a group of pipes at the bottom. Pein nodded. "I have something in mind."

* * *

_I don't want to go back in there._ Deidara hovered over the hole, watching the puppeteer turn around and make his way back into the now destroyed studio, disappearing into the darkness. The child gazed over the village, catching a glimpse of both the Akatsuki leader and the only female standing on the tongue of the large gargoyle-like statue sticking out of the top of the Ame tower. He frowned. _Oh no, they saw us._

The boy turned back only have a gust wind blow his hair into his face. The bird tumbled in the air for a moment but gradually stabilized, flapping furiously against the gust. Deidara pulled his bang behind his ear, allowing himself complete vision of the storm clouds in the distance. Deidara took a final look at what used to be the studio, then steered the bird away from it.

Since Hidan had come along, life in Amegakure had become more troublesome. With Hidan constantly pissing off Kakuzu, he could count at least five things per day that were destroyed in their path of wrath. Deidara took an immediate disliking to Hidan, and so did the others. So far however, their complaints fell on deaf ears. Pein had done nothing to quell the tension, so as far as Deidara knew, they'd have to deal with whatever came their way.

Hidan was a demanding little brat. He seemed to think he owned everything, ordering the others around and making a big deal of even the smallest of errors or actions. Though he was often beat down by Kakuzu, his arrogance and pride served to resist, still naming names on each member. Sasori was known as 'old man' and Kisame's strange skin colour had been insulted on more than one occasion. Zetsu was often insulted as well, and it didn't help that he was older than both Deidara and Itachi, making him feel as if they were inferior. Well, on the other hand, they could be considered lucky. For the most part, his opposition towards Pein had lead him to completely ignore those he thought weren't worthy of his foul mouth. Apparently both being it.

Deidara had just about enough of it. Hidan was causing chaos, and not the kind that the blond was fond of.

He passed close to the edge of the barrier that encased the entire village. The bird swooped down and began to glide lower to the floor, easily dodging and weaving through the maze-like pattern of empty ally ways and streets. Finally, he stumbled upon the avenue that lead straight to the exit of Amegakure. Deidara pulled the bird into a hover and glanced over, spying Itachi and Kisame staring back from the gates. "Itachi?"

"Hey, what happened?" Kisame waved as the bird drifted closer and the rider hopped off it's back.

"Hidan just blast through the wall out of nowhere." Deidara muttered. "Now danna's angry at him. He's angry at me too though so I'm not staying."

"What for?" Kisame asked.

Deidara stood for a moment, then finally sighed. "I was complaining about not being a member like you guys and he got angry and told me to throw out his organ bag. He tried to lecture me about how 'we've talked about this' and I...kinda told him to shut up."

The blond slumped and stared at his toes. At the very least he didn't have to do the usual chores, but just that alone didn't make him feel any less guilty. He knew the puppeteer meant well, but Hidan's arrival just added to the bombers sour attitude.

"Hehe, well he can't stay like that for too long." Kisame shrugged and sauntered over the child.

Deidara felt a hand pat him on the head and slowly lifted his gaze to see the grinning shark. The swordsman stepped back and mused at the boy's expression. Deidara tilted his head slightly, but had to admit, he felt a tug at the corner of his lips.

"That's why we're going for a little bit." Itachi piped up. "I'm sorry, but I can't stand being around him much longer."

The child blinked sadly. "You're leaving already?"

Both Akatsuki exchanged anxious looks. Kisame forced a smile and patted the back of his head. "Sorry kid, but maybe you guys should start going too."

"Oh..." Deidara was empty of words, unsure of what to say. He didn't like Itachi that much, but he was fond of his partner. Regardless, he didn't like being left behind.

Both members turned for the gate. Kisame made a small wave and they started for the exit while the blond watched. It didn't bother him before when the other left, but it sort of angered him to think that an Akatsuki could go wherever they wanted. Deidara, being a subordinate on the other hand meant that he couldn't do that, and even then, he was chained down even further by having to stick by Sasori. Not that he minded, but the added benefit of being a member bothered him.

* * *

He stomped out a fire just before it could make it to a wooden piece on the floor, sizzling out into a fine smoke. His shadow was idle for a moment, then a hand picked up the small cylinder. Sasori glazed his eyes over his work, then continued further into the room. Wooden pieces everywhere. He'd have to do some major clean up. Sasori patted down his cloak from debris and glanced out the massive hole at the back of the hall, still singed with small flames around its edges. Deidara had left, a good idea on his part. Sasori sauntered around the room, flipping over wooden boards and other items to find the rest of the small puppet pieces.

He walked to the corner and kicked over the clay lizard, revealing the palm piece, next to it was Deidara's old drawing book. Sasori tilted his head for a moment, then picked up the drawing book first to dust it off. It's bright turquoise colour had dulled, now little but a smudged teal. The corners of the cover were tattered and fluffy. I'll get him a new one.

Sasori placed the drawing book on the floor behind him and picked up the wooden hand piece. It was barely done. He couldn't figure out how to do it, the anatomy still escaped him. No matter how many concepts he went through, no matter what the files that Tobi had given him so long ago had mentioned, it didn't quite fit. Sasori shrugged and held onto it. Maybe he'd resume his work on the project later. Sasori picked up the book and checked out the front and back sides.

Curiosity piqued at him and he flipped it open, leafing through his old drawings from when the blond was only eight years old. Sasori smiled at the memory, it only seemed like yesterday when he used to be a bit more bubbly. Deidara had gotten so serious since then.

As the pages progressed, chipmunks and squirrels improved and evolved into birds and copied dinosaur illustrations out of books from the library. Sasori halted and stared at a certain page at the very beginning. His lips parted in amazement, but soon they pulled into a smile.

It was a picture of Sasori, crudely drawn at that. He was working at the table under the lamp light, little scribbles of the dull pencil drawn to his right side to indicate shadows. The picture portrayed him hard at work on a project he didn't quite recognize. Beneath the picture were some other drawings of him. Deidara seemed to be trying to wrap his head around human anatomy during the time of this drawing, and his master just happened to be the subject. No wonder the brat was so secretive about his drawings. He never let anyone see them, not like his sculptures which he shoved in everyone's faces.

Sasori shut the book closed. Well, what's private is private. He shouldn't be snooping, not like Tobi.

* * *

Deidara walked at a slow pace, a drag in his step that anyone who observed could notice. He kept a wary gaze on the familiar hall, the floor that he and his danna owned. Yes, owned, each Akatsuki seemed to own a floor, not officially, but some sort of turf thing that they had. He wished he had his own turf. Of course, he had to share it with Sasori.

He didn't want to go back. Where would he sleep? His bed was destroyed from what he could remember. Sasori was probably waiting with a mouthful for him. Deidara could just as easily apologize, but he doubted that would fix anything. He'd spent the entire day away from places they used to go together, like the market place and the restaurants. It was getting dark now, and he didn't feel like sleeping out in the rain.

The child turned to the much too familiar hall. He stopped and blinked, quick to notice that the rubble was gone, but the hole remained. Deidara felt a horrid feeling weigh down his chest. So Sasori had gone to work cleaning without him? Less work, but it only served to add to the storm cloud over his head.

"There you are."

Deidara froze. That was Sasori? Was he still pissed? He slowly turned, almost flinching at the sight of his master standing down the hall, a smile on his face. He didn't trust that smile, something was wrong, it had to be.

"What did you end up doing all day?" Sasori approached the child, noticing as the boy backed away slightly and dipped his head.

"...Nothing." Deidara murmured and stared at the floor. The little cracks and rock on it suddenly seemed extremely interesting.

"I forgive you."

His head snapped up. Deidara stared with wide eyes at the puppeteer. Did he just? No, no way, he never forgave that easily. There must be a catch, somewhere. Sasori was always so bent on obedience, why let _this_ slide?

"What's with the look?" Sasori chortled. Deidara didn't answer.

"You were just in bad mood weren't you?"

The child remained silent.

Sasori would have sighed, then stared at what used to be the door to his creation room. He thought for a moment. "I guess we can't sleep here anymore."

Deidara turned around, glancing at the hall.

"Guess we'll use one of the other rooms."

With that, Deidara was ushered out of the hall and made their way over to one of the many guest rooms in the Ame tower. Sasori closed the door behind them, sending the room into a pitch blackness. He warned the child briefly not to move or touch anything, his footsteps and the faint creaking of his joints being the only sound that emitted from him. It sounded like cardboard rubbing against each other, and then a match lit. Deidara watched as Sasori sent the flame on a candle and flicked his hand to put out the match, casting a gentle glow within the sparse room and the ash scent of smoke.

"You can move now."

Deidara immediately stepped forward and got a good look at the room. It was like all of the other ones. A bit small but had the basic necessities. A single bed, a desk on the other side as well as a bedside table. A gyotaku was pinned to the wall, depicting a large carp that could have easily matched Deidara in height with black ink.

While Sasori was busy making the bed, Deidara hopped over to the desk and noticed as a pile of wooden parts were strewn across it, along with his drawing book just in the corner. Deidara picked up one of the pieces and recognized the rough texture. It was the old project Sasori claimed to have given up. Just before the Orochimaru attack, he was recounting them under the tree. The blond blinked and put it down.

He turned to his master. "Where are the other puppets?"

Sasori sat on the bed. "I stuffed them in another room." He pulled off his shoes and set them by the foot of the bed just before laying sprawled out on it. This was one of the rare times that the puppeteer would sleep. With no muscles to use chakra on, Deidara knew he could preserve his energy for far longer than the regular human. Sasori could go days, weeks without sleep, but it was still a necessity. His regular schedule included sleeping once a week, but he could go with only 16 hours a month to recharge his chakra.

"Get ready for bed." He rolled over and faced the wall.

Deidara blinked, then made a confused sound.

"The bathroom's fine, it still works." Sasori waved off.

* * *

Deidara returned and removed his sandals, placing the by the door. He glanced over at Sasori who was already sleeping at the corner of the bed, leaving plenty of room for him. The child didn't feel like sleeping quite yet. He wanted to check something out.

Okay, maybe this was a little risky. He'd disobeyed Sasori once, with this, he'd be doing it again, but something nagged at the back of his mind. Deidara shuffled cautiously through the wooden pieces, noting how only the smooth ones had the scorpion logo imprinted. Deidara cocked his head and realized how small they were. Such small pieces compared to the ones that Sasori usually made. The wood was old too.

"Mrph..."

Deidara carefully dropped the wooden piece and sent a stare towards the redhead. Sasori shifted slightly, but managed to still be asleep. Good thing, he felt like his heart was beating a million times per second.

He opened the first drawer and welcomed with the sight of a few blueprints stapled together. Deidara carefully removed them and sat on the wooden chair, flipping through the diagrams slowly as not to create the flapping nose of paper. Deidara frowned as he found none of the measurements matched. There were about only ten drawings though, so it he doubted every puppet was in this stack.

Through the other drawers he went, but they were either filled with tools or empty. Deidara felt his eyelids droop slightly and let out a slow breath. Looking at the digital clock in the corner, he spent a good hour looking through these. He felt amazed that Sasori hadn't made another sound or noticed at all.

Deidara finally pushed the drawer back in and sauntered over to the bed, not so subtly flopping onto it after blowing out the candle. The added weight didn't escape the puppeteer's attention and the next thing Deidara knew, he was pulled into his arms, held close to Sasori's chest. It didn't feel weird as it was comforting. The blond snuggled into his cloak and closed his eyes while the other pulled the sheets over them. His hugs were more more comfortable when they were sleeping. Not like the awkward ones during the day.

"Hey."

He heard Sasori's groggy voice grumble.

"What?"

"Why were you looking through my stuff?"

_He noticed!_ Deidara immediately tried to think up an excuse. "U-um, I was curious, that's it."

Sasori stared at him dryly past the pillow, then closed his eyes. "Really then?"

"U-un, good night danna. Love you."

"Yeah."

* * *

Deidara woke up, warm under the blankets. He still couldn't get the thing off his mind. What kind of project was it? Normally, he wouldn't be so inquisitive about his mentor's projects, but this one...he got a strange feeling about it.

"Danna?"

No response.

"Danna?"

"Hmm...what?"

The child ignored his irritated tone and looked up at the puppeteer's face. "You know that project you said you gave up?"

"Hm."

"Where did you put the diagrams?" He paused nervously. "Uh, not that I want to look at them or anything..."

Sasori opened a sleepy eye. "It's fine brat. There are no plans for them."

Deidara blinked. "Did you get rid of them?"

"No more questions after this one kid, I didn't need any."

"...Why?"

The puppeteer made a curious smirk and pulled the child closer to him, readjusting the covers. He ignored the uncomfortable whining the eleven-year old mad and rested his chin on his subordinate's head. "You might see someday."

* * *

**A/N: Things are coming to a close faster than I expected. Wait, when I say that, it's usually over ten chapters away...it's still so far...And the reason for the lack of description during the end was because everything is black without the light on. I'm probably going to return to my usual schedule or weekends and Wednesdays after this week. For now, I'm pumping out as much as I can before the holidays end...**

**Thanks for reading! Review if you'd like!**


	47. The Illness

**The Illness**

"Itachi!" Kisame called out. Of course, it was just the kid's nature after all. It seemed no matter how often they talked about, the Uchiha was always trying to run off and fight the enemy on his own. Not that the shark didn't trust him to do certain tasks like that, he was still thirteen after all.

The swordsman darted through the mist, the lonely sound of his shoes hitting the water being the only sound he could pick up. It wasn't until he heard another splash in a puddle to his left did he pause and listen, silently waiting for the next event to pop up.

_KLANG_

Kunai's clashing. A shoe scraping against the wet, muddy floor. Kisame focused harder in the silence, Samehada's scales began to rattle with it's new found resonance, breaking its wielder into an all out sprint. Kisame grabbed his blade and stomped on the floor, skidding as he wheeled between two figures in the mist to bring down his weapon with a loud cry.

Itachi sprung back, loosing his ground against the slippery environment, he dragged his hand in the mud in attempt to slow down to a halt. The young Akatsuki panted, then felt a sharp sting of pain on his cheek as a cut slid across and began to ooze some blood. Another object fell into sight from the mist, a blade spinning wildly in the air before planting itself into the ground a few meters from the Uchiha. Itachi took a moment to breath, then gazed upwards towards his partner.

Kisame stood up and hauled his sword to rest on his shoulder. He remained attentive to the distant sound of pattering, fading slowly until it was no longer within earshot. He turned back to address his partner, his face showing no sort of joy or excitement from the momentary strike. "You just don't learn do you?"

Itachi's gaze faltered and he rose from his stance, limping slightly on his left leg. His eyes didn't even show a glimmer of red, indicating the sharingan had not been used. He averted his gaze from his partner and stared at his foot, the white leg warmer was patched in blood. It was strange, his vision was bit blurry. Blood loss? No, he had barely lost any blood. Tired? He was barely tired.

Noticing the look on his partner's face, Kisame fixed Samehada to his sash and approached the young boy. "Hey, what's wrong?"

"It-it..." Itachi tried to voice his concern but something caught in his throat. Immediately, he felt something vial spill into his mouth and fill his cheeks. Before Kisame could even comprehend what was going on, the boy had collapsed onto the floor and was hacking violently. His hand managed to catch whatever was being spilled, but the crimson liquid still managed to slip past his fingers.

"Itachi!"

* * *

Konan stood outside of the medical room, her expression rigid. Just standing here, she could notice the small flicker of the lights above, the sounds of hospital bed wheels screeching against the clean white tiles of the infirmary. She glanced over her shoulder and caught the gaze of Kisame sitting on a bench outside of the check up. No words were traded between them, just a silent acknowledgement.

"Konan!" She heard a tiny voice call out from the hall. Turning, she recognized Deidara jogging towards them, eventually coming to her side. No one seemed to notice or care for his arrival.

She furrowed her eyebrows and looked around. "What are you doing here? Where's Sasori?"

"I sneaked out." Deidara explained plainly. "What happened to Itachi?"

"We don't know yet." Kisame answered his question, still sitting slouched on the bench. A loud beeping noise emitted from the lobby, but no one took notice. "I just arrived on the scene after he ran off and when I saved him, he started coughing out blood. The doctors say it isn't because of any injuries or some effect of exhaustion."

He saw the boy's face melt into concern. Kisame raised a brow but didn't comment, instead deciding to change the subject for the sake of keeping the worst at the back of their minds. "Aren't you scared Sasori will find you?"

"He doesn't care." Deidara shrugged. "He's just working on his puppets again."

The door clicked open and the three fell silent. Stepping out of the door was Itachi without his Akatsuki cloak, and by his side was the doctor. Itachi glanced at Deidara as he backed up to make room for him. The blond looked up at the medical staff, his curiosity piqued when he noticed his face, seemingly unsettled somehow. One couldn't truly tell if looking from the front with his glasses blocking the way, but he could see it, how plainly it showed.

"Well, I think I will have to talk to you for a moment, lady angel." The doctor momentarily bowed and held open the door as a gesture for Konan to enter.

The door clicked shut and left Itachi to sit beside his partner. Immediately, the other two closed in on him, but he chose not to look at them. A minute passed before someone chose to say something. The words didn't sound good, so neither wanted to appear too rude.

"What did they say?" Deidara asked slowly.

"I'm sick."

Kisame blinked. "What are you sick with?"

Itachi held in his answer for a moment. "It's a mix of things, but mainly terminal."

A dead silence plopped down, then rose with a nervous tension. Deidara wasn't actually too sure what the word 'terminal' meant, but it sounded bad. From the expression Kisame was making, he could only guess it was even worst than 'bad'. No name? Did that mean there was no cure? Sasori named all of his mixtures, even if they were just letters with a number next to it. Something completely new? The likes of which medical science hasn't seen before?

Itachi's head bowed further, staring at the white tiles on the floor while his bangs kept his expression hidden. From what anyone else saw, he'd be distraught, they wouldn't be wrong. How? How could he have such bad luck? He needed to survive, he couldn't afford to die here. What was the point of using his last resort to escape Orochimaru when he was due to die of an illness that would take his life just as early?

The blond tilted his head slightly, then turned to Kisame. "Does that mean...can he still do missions?"

The swordsman shrugged, but just barely. "I don't know kid. That's Leader's decision."

"What about a cure? Can't he find one?" Deidara's tone rose slightly, surprising the Uchiha.

"There isn't any, that's why it's terminal." Kisame shook his head.

"It's an effect of the Sharingan."

The thirteen-year old reclined against the wall, trying to slow his heartbeat with the cold feeling against his skin. There was a look in his eye that seemed hopeless, empty, glazed over into less of a confident black and more of a shaky grey. "One of the capabilities of it, there's a technique where the cost of using it is death. That's probably why I have it. It's caused me to contract hemoptysis, and among other things" He squinted. "Though I don't quite remember."

Itachi recalled what the doctor had spoken to him about. He remembered the moment he heard it, how his heart seemed to stop and he couldn't blink nor breath properly. For a second in that room, he thought he was having another spasm, but he didn't hack anything out that time. "The estimate is less than three months, due to my lifestyle."

A muffled murmur and the sliding of chairs could be heard behind the door. Finally, Konan emerged from the room with a grim expression. She approached the young raven and seemed to contemplate her words. "Itachi, I'm sorry."

She took a moment to let the young Akatsuki sit there and comprehend the situation. Her chest tightened but her attentions turned when she felt a tug on her sleeve.

"What's gonna happen now?" Deidara asked.

Konan's gaze fell. "There is a way to treat him, but it will only post phone his death."

Itachi shot up from his seat. "A treatment?! What is-hurk!" He fell back onto the bench and began to gasp, both hands flying to his mouth as he squirmed against the pain. The other two members immediately came to his aid while Deidara stepped back, unable to do anything but watch the young Uchiha suffer. The door swung open and the doctor joined them.

_It's coming so soon. I didn't think it would._ Deidara's expression grew solemn.

* * *

"Here."

Itachi shifted on his bed, then rolled over slowly and kept his breathing steady. It felt horrible, as if his throat had been washed down with tar. His head felt light due to the lack of oxygen, but coughing out the gunk only served to spark a chain reaction and evolve into an episode. For a moment, he couldn't see directly in front of the bed, then looked up to see a blurry shade of teal and yellow. Itachi stilled and his vision cleared, revealing Deidara standing over his bed, a white bottle in hand just inches from his face. He stared at it for a moment, eyeing it suspiciously, then looked back up at the blond and furrowed his eyebrows.

Deidara made a frustrated sigh and stomped. "Danna made this for you. It costs less money for him to do it. It wasn't like we couldn't buy some, but he insisted. I'm delivering it." He rattled the bottle.

He could tell the Uchiha didn't quite buy him. Instead, the older child continued to stare, then mouthed some test words before he finally spoke. "How do you know it's not poison?"

The blond was taken aback for a moment, then remembered how the puppeteer was a poison specialist. It wasn't far-fetched of an idea really, but the boy could tell when he heard sincerity from his master. "I just know." Deidara paused hesitantly. "You're free to kill me if it is."

Itachi swung his legs over the side of the bed and took the bottle. Deidara found a chair to the side of the room and sat on it. He didn't want to come, but the moment he got back to the studio, Sasori was quick to hand him the bottle, briefly explained what it was, and ordered him out. He watched the other inspect the bottle, squinting to read the fine print on the label. Why did he even do it? He liked to think that it was out of fear from the puppeteer but he felt genuinely obliged to do the deed. The sensation was strange, he was so eager to see to the end of Itachi but after the Orochimaru attack, he became accustomed to his company.

To think that soon enough, Itachi would be gone, it felt as if something would be missing. Maybe it was because he used to be the only child in the organization. It felt a little lonely, even with Sasori watching his back. When Itachi arrived, he was jealous, but there was a moment of empathy back then.

"Did he just make this?" Itachi looked directly at the lid instructions and began to unscrew it.

"I don't know." Deidara sunk his head between his shoulder and kicked his legs.

The lid came loose and inside was a collection of lime green tablets. Itachi shook the bottle and watched as the little tablets danced inside before finally selecting one and plopping it into his mouth. Both waited in suspense as the seconds ticked by. Itachi stared at the opposite wall, then gulped. "I don't think it's poison."

Deidara let out a loud sigh of relief and melted into the chair. "That's good..."

"Did you hear that Hidan left on a mission with Kakuzu? They're going to the Kirigakure."

"No." The boy scooted the chair closer. "Isn't that where you went?"

Itachi nodded. "Yeah. They left immediately after I came here."

The boy smiled and laughed a little. "Maybe Leader just wanted to get rid of him."

"Probably. I don't blame him." Itachi closed the bottle and placed it on his bedside table. "Kisame keeps trying to help me. I don't think he understands, I can fight for myself."

"Oh? Really?" Deidara rolled his eyes. "And it's not just because you're a kid."

"I used to be in the ANBU."

"Well" He chortled with pissed scowl. "Now that you're sick, he's gonna help you a lot. You can't do everything on your own you know."

"I know that." Itachi didn't seem to catch the drift. "I help the other people on my squad. That's how it used to be."

Suddenly, the loud creak of wood sliding against the floor broke the relative silence in the room. Deidara shot up with a dark look. "That's how it used to be! You know you should think about it! If it weren't for danna and everyone fighting Orochimaru to buy you time, _you would dead!_"

The blond's tone was stern and sharp, almost sounding like the puppeteer. It shocked Itachi, who sat on the bed still as a statue with wide eyes. The subordinate stomped towards the door and glared daggers at the corner of his eyes as he stood by the exit. "I feel a little bad for your brother. Maybe you really were better off dead, who would want help from you anyway?"

_SLAM_

Itachi continued to stare at the door, speechless. He heard the harsh footfalls trudge outside the door, slowly fading until they disappeared. His stiff shoulders relaxed, but relaxing didn't help quell the strange feeling of apprehension that seemed to nag at the Uchiha. A lingering gaze dropped to the floor. He couldn't completely understand, but maybe there was some truth to what Deidara had said. Something about the very notion made him sick to his stomach, but it didn't spark another spasm.

Before he knew anything, tears had sprung into his eyes, but Itachi simply held his head in his hands. Was he right? Was he that selfish? His breath grew raspy, but as it seemed, the medicine worked and held down another coughing fit. Instead, he was free to cry as he needed to.

Alone.

* * *

Deidara stood in the hallway. He couldn't pick up another sound, no one else was on this floor but himself and Itachi anyway. He clenched his hands into fists and bit his cheek. Why did he care? Why did he even consider it? Age meant nothing, it was what one could do that mattered. Itachi failed to fight off death, and it was only with his master's help that he could hold it off. For how long though? Deidara wasn't sure if he cared anymore. That's right, the Uchiha were selfish. He could go ahead and die in a hole filled with his own blood and vomit and he wouldn't give a shit. He regretted calling out and demanding to have Itachi saved from Orochimaru.

He staggered forward, then continued his way down the hall back from where he came. Some fights were fun, like the one he had with Kurotsuchi back in Iwagakure. They were meant to kill each other, but it didn't matter to either until Sasori showed up to separate the two. Deidara hadn't seen her since, but he felt a little proud of what his old friend could do. She was better than whatever Itachi was. She wasn't weak. Neither was Sasori, nor Kisame, or the rest of the Akatsuki.

Hidan? Maybe he'd make an exception. Anyone was better than that guy, even Tobi.

He arrived at the studio and twisted the doorknob, revealing the dark inner room with puppets lined up against the wall. Sasori wasn't present, probably doing something elsewhere. Deidara closed the door behind him and took a gander at the room. It was more sparse now, but Sasori had managed to fix things up where they were due. This room was the second largest one on the floor. It didn't smell of the familiar wood dust scent that the old one used to but Deidara couldn't complain. Sasori tried to make the best of their situation. He even convinced Kakuzu to hand over some compensation for his outburst against Hidan.

Well, Pein had his back.

"No one does anything on their own." Deidara muttered and sauntered into the room. He was stupid, what a stupid move. He should have let the bird get destroyed at the hands of Itachi and kept him in the air, far from the battle. It wouldn't have changed anything. Sasori and the leaders would still fight Orochimaru, Kisame would still be there, it could all have been avoided if Deidara didn't feel that moment of weakness.

Siblings were stupid.

He heard the door creak open. He turned around and watched Sasori saunter inside, sparing the child a small glance before passing him and moving to his desk. He sat down and remained still for a moment, then his head spun towards him. "Did you give it to him?"

Deidara nodded.

"Good." Sasori returned to his desk and began to put away some tools used to be make the medicine, putting them away into drawers and cabinets he set up. "I had Kakuzu and Hidan go on a mission to get me more supplies. That small bottle took up what I had left."

"Danna, why didn't we just buy the medicine?"

"Money brat." Sasori closed the cabinet cover. "Kakuzu spent too much to make up for the damage he caused so he couldn't afford to deal with Itachi's predicament."

Deidara felt a pang of annoyance and made shrill glare. "Itachi's so stupid..."

"Hm?" Sasori turned around and noticed the look on the child's face. This kid was so moody sometimes. Muttering under his breath so often, he couldn't tell what was important and what wasn't.

Deidara looked up. "Sasori no danna, what do you think of people that aren't grateful for what they have?"

"Huh? Um..." The puppeteer thought for a moment. It wasn't hard to answer the question. Hearing the kid's tone right now, he could definitely understand how he felt.

* * *

_The sun slowly set over the wall of Sunagakure. At this hour, it was a bit strange that no wind could be felt, unusually calm weather. He and his friend strolled down the street. Saosri had agreed to tag along with the other boy on his way home, watching as he held both arms folded behind his head. The long shadows stretched across the orange and yellow shaded homes, like sand castles on a beach shore. _

_ Komushi made a loud sigh. "Must be great to be you, Sasori. You're so young, but you're already doing work that matter so much to the village."_

_ Sasori stared at his shoes, brown eyes drifting across the avenue. The genin continued. "Granny Chiyo must be proud too."_

_ "...Are you listening?" Komushi kept walking. The sun lowered even further. "Granny Chiyo's always worrying about you." He moved his gaze to the skies. "I can't wait for the day people start seeing me as a real shinobi, the way they do your puppets." He turned around to face Sasori, stopping him. Komushi held out his hand in emphasis. "My parents always treat me like a kid. They say I'm not meant to be a shinobi."_

_ Sasori watched as a smile grew onto his companion's face, eager to speak his next sentence. A gleam in his eye. "But I've been intrusted with guarding the border. It may just be guard duty, but it's my chance to prove myself-"_

_ "Komushi!"_

_ A woman appeared at the end of the street. She held a tense look on her face and marched up to the two, mainly at her son. Komushi's expression easily turned to one of dread and backed up towards the redhead, putting space between himself and his mother. _

_ "Do you realize what time it is?" She grabbed the boy's arms and held him still. "How can you make me worry like this?_

_ "Hey, quit it! You're making me look bad!"Komushi wriggled out her grasp and faced his mother. "I'm not a kid anymore. I'll be serving as a border guard soon!" He whirled around and tried to run past Sasori to no avail. His mother grabbed his arm and tugged him back. _

_ "You can just refuse that mission!" She yanked fiercely and grabbed the boy by his torso, lifting him up like a potato sack to haul him home. "I'll look after you for the rest of your life."_

_ "Quit it already!"_

_ Sasori watched the two disappear onto the street. Mother holding as tightly as she could while her son kept fighting her grasp._

* * *

"They're...oblivious." Sasori attempted to put his words carefully. He didn't want the child to get the wrong idea. This earned a puzzled look from the blond. "It's hard to appreciate what you've always had from the beginning. It's...a standard from birth. They can't see behind it unless they try really hard." His gaze fell back to the boy. "Why'd you ask?"

Deidara took a moment to absorb the information. It made some sense, almost accurate. Wait, how did the puppeteer know that? Should he mention the conversation? "I was talking to Itachi. He thinks he doesn't need help when the only reason he's alive is because of people helping him. He thinks Kisame is treating him like a child."

"Is that so?" The sand ninja watched his subordinate make his way to the bed, plopping onto it. "There's nothing you can do about it. They have to realize it on their own."

"But it annoys me!" The eleven-year old almost yelled. He looked back at his master. "Why doesn't he care? You're helping him. Why doesn't he see that?"

"It's just not something they know." Sasori lidded his gaze. "And who knows? Maybe they know it better than you do. You just can't tell."

"But-" Deidara tried to think of something else but his mind drew a blank. Sasori ended the conversation there and resumed work on his old project, pulling up the small pieces and sanding them down. He considered recreating the pieces.

"Danna."

He paused and mentally sighed. "What?"

"Why did you leave Sunagakure?"

Sasori blinked. That question? He hadn't asked that in years. He turned to the boy, immediately finding himself in a rut as a big innocent blue eye stared him back. He averted his gaze from it and was silent for a moment. "I guess I should tell you a little bit shouldn't I?"

Deidara leaned in, curiosity piqued. He expected the redhead to brush it off but today, he suddenly broke through.

He combed his fingers through his red hair. "It was because...I had no reason to stay. I wanted to work on my art, and I couldn't bring it to its full potential there. I didn't like there very much. If the Akatsuki holds me down too much, I might just leave this place too." He caught a glimpse of the child's expression falter. Sasori stared at him.

* * *

_"Not going to tell me? Oh well, or is it, you don't have any plans at all? A bit of a disappointment. Weren't you going to live forever? If so, you'll definitely outlive the Akatsuki."_

_ He's taunting me. Hiruko moved forward, ignoring the others monologue. He didn't have time for some soul-searching debate with his partner. For now, he had bigger problems than whatever Orochimaru was rambling about. _

_ The snake chuckled. "There are things out there you can't kill, not always enemies."_

* * *

What his former partner said still stuck with him. It bothered him somehow, but Sasori managed to scrounge up a smile despite his mood. He'd planned for it ever since. "Don't worry, I'll bring you along right with me. I won't let this end."


	48. Back Up!

**Back Up!**

"Nagato."

A deep voice called from the shadows. The gaunt man rocked on his holds and roused awake. Through the darkness, he could make out the figure of a cloaked man with spiky hair. He gazed around the space, looking for a white rose but found none. Nagato turned back to the silhouette in the shadowy room. He knew full well of who it was. "Hm?"

"What have you done about Hidan?" The other male walked closer. "I hear Kakuzu plans on leaving us if he isn't impressed right away." He stopped right at the foot of the giant mechanical walker. It's massive size didn't serve the intimidate the masked-man even the slightest. "I just heard about what happened to Itachi."

"It's been taken care of." Nagato's head dipped slightly and caught his breath. It felt so hard to recover after sleeping. "In response to Itachi's predicament, I had Kakuzu's team go on a mission to demonstrate their worthiness to the other members. The mission is to retrieve ingredients and supplies."

"Ah, for Sasori?"

Tobi sounded pleased, a good sign. Nagato nodded just barely and took another steady breath. "It was originally on his request. Kakuzu and Hidan were supposed to go on a war mission, but I changed it afterwards. I will have Sasori's team go on it, but it will be a little while before they can depart."

"His team..." The Akatsuki leader watched the other fold his arms and hold his chin thoughtfully. "He doesn't have a partner. Can you really call it that?"

"I've already planned on having Deidara due to enter once he turns sixteen." Nagato paused and drifted his gaze. "I've noticed Konan is against the idea. She wants him to at least be partnered with someone else. I was wondering if Zetsu would be willing to put up with him."

"She's still on that?" Tobi sighed. "On the note of Zetsu, I'll see to it I get his opinion; otherwise now Kakuzu's team is all the way in the Land of Waves. What could Sasori possibly want over there?"

"He says that one of his old hideouts there has the supplies he needs." The Akatsuki leader paused abruptly and managed a few raspy breaths. "Of course, he didn't leave it unprepared."

* * *

Sasori cocked his head slightly and shifted it against his arm. He stared blankly at the opposite wall. Now that he thought about it, maybe sending them wasn't such a good idea. Be it was without direct consequence, Sasori would have been happy to send them off to get his things, but after some thought, Pein probably wouldn't be too pleased to have two members sent to their own deaths. Not that he hadn't considered the threat, but he forgot how closely he had to guard the area from bandits during his year long stay.

Great, now he had to go find a way to either swerve them off the road or stop them completely. If things weren't already practically between him and leader, this would definitely make things worse. Sasori didn't like the idea of being reminded of the previous fight. He stood barely a chance, didn't even put a scratch on him. He didn't want to stray too close to Pein's bad side again.

"Danna?"

Sasori turned to find Deidara standing right next to him, head tilted straight up at his face. He hadn't noticed the boy approach, strange, he must be out of it today.

"Something wrong?"

The puppeteer seemed to think over the question before shaking his head. "No, I'm fine." He moved past the child to the exit of the room and unlatched the lock, swinging the door open.

"Are you sure?"

He paused at the door, then took a few steps back to peer over his shoulder at the child. Deidara only stared back, a look that wasn't quite concern but not one of joy either on his face. A silence fell between them in the empty room. Sasori's expression didn't change. He contemplated in his head before slowly closing the door with a small click. "Remember that mission that I sent Hidan and Kakuzu on?"

"Un." Deidara nodded.

"Yes well, they're going to the hideout we stayed at over the summer." Sasori explained.

The blond blinked, then tilted his head in confusion. "Which one?"

"The one closest to The Land of Wind, the first one."

Deidara hummed for a moment before his face lit up. "Oh! You mean the one where you left me all alone with Tobi while you left to get your special puppet!"

Sasori didn't buy the happy tone one bit, but he decided to ignore the sarcasm. "Yes, that one. I had some supplies there that I wanted them to get, but I just remembered, there's a trap around the entrance."

Deidara cocked his head the other way. He remembered a bit of that summer, but it had long since faded from his memory with the coming years. "But that one responds to your rings don't they? Kakuzu should be fine."

"Ah, no, I actually don't know if it works anymore." The puppeteer could have sighed. "It's been three years since I've maintained it. It's probably faulty now due to the humid air. I'm going to talk with Leader about ordering them off of the mission."

The blond made his way over to the puppeteer and began to tug on his sleeve. "Isn't it too late for that?"

"I know, I also know that Leader won't be happy to hear what I have to say."

Deidara backed up slightly and held his chin to act as if he were in deep thought. His eyes squinted into little thin lines before he finally attempted to snap his fingers. "I know! I'll go!"

The boy noticed the puppeteer visibly stiffen at the idea. "You'll what?"

"I'll do it! I'll go and stop them for you!" Deidara chirped and turned on his heel to get his things in preparation. This action was unsuccessful however as he felt a hand grab his arm and hoist it in the air.

Sasori frowned and held the boy in place, "Oh no you don't, it's too dangerous."

The boy stopped abruptly and stilled in place. He puffed out his cheeks slightly and retorted, "It's not like I don't know the way."

The puppeteer shook his head, "That's not it; I mean you're too inexperienced. It's not that far but it's far enough. I can't leave while the place is in disrepair and neither can you."

Suddenly, he felt two hands cling and yank at his robe. He was forced to look down and saw Deidara made a face of determination at him; mouth set in a thin line with no hint of drawing into a joking smile. It wasn't unusual for the boy to handle him with such disrespect before. Most children would be scolded and punished for pulling at their superiors, but Sasori had ceased to be so strict years ago. By now, it was probably a bad habit that he let Deidara develop, grabbing at people to get what he wanted and other actions along those lines. He didn't think much of it at first, not when the boy was just demanding to be fed or to drag the puppeteer out of his comfortable workspace to play and train. Now however, he regretted putting aside instilling too many manners into the child.

Especially with a look like that. It was easy when the boy barely reached his hip, but Deidara was taller now, and stronger too. Sasori wouldn't be able to shake him off as easily as he did before. Why didn't he anticipate any of this?

"Please!" Deidara pleaded and held his robe in an iron grip, probably unaware that he was holding the redhead hostage. "I can do it! I don't want to be useless!"

Sasori blinked. What did he mean? Do something? "What are you talking about?"

The blond dipped his head, voice becoming subdued. Sasori stood still and took a moment to listen, a silence falling in the room. With the child's constant questioning when awake and snoring when asleep, Sasori found it strangely rare, but uncomfortable at the same time.

"I wanna do something...something myself." Deidara murmured. "You're always helping me, or someone. Someone always does. I don't want to be saved for once." Stupid, so stupid. He'd been thinking about it recently. Why did the others get to join and he didn't? He'd concluded already that he wasn't too young as some said, Itachi was barely any older. Deidara didn't think he was too weak either, if he was able to capture Hidan so easily. The subject, he hadn't thought about it so deeply before. Now he spent more time thinking about what the hell he was doing with his time rather than pondering the subjects of art. What he was doing now suddenly became more immediate than his art. His art could come later. What was he doing? Why did every single time he got stuck somewhere, Sasori or someone else had to come to his rescue? He wasn't too young. Age didn't matter here. Before during his spar with Itachi, he used his prototype C2 in order to prove that had something coming, that he was no longer a baby that needed to be cradled. To prove to Sasori, Kisame, Kabuto, everyone, that he was no longer a fledgling. However what came of that? It was a useless spectacle. He had barely done anything during the Orochimaru incident. He didn't think he needed to, just watched along the sidelines as he was saved and saved again, thinking that it was his master's duty to do so.

No, he had enough. C2 meant nothing if it was all just a test. He realized now, capturing Hidan meant little. He still knew nothing of the young teenager and he still estimated himself greater. Regardless, Hidan wasn't afraid to challenge others, nor was he every saved, just being beat around until his skull was bashed in; or well, as far as he'd witnessed. Deidara needed some true experience, something of merit to show that he could take on a task normally given to an Akatsuki or someone of the same ranking. He could lead Kakuzu and Hidan, and far better than he ever could with Sasori's former cell during his return to Iwa.

"I wanna prove myself!" Deidara threw his glare at the puppeteer. He yanked again. "Let me! Let me do it myself! Danna!"

Sasori didn't react, his gaze as cool as it had always been. Just as the blonde began to become frustrated with his silence, his master spoke. "We've talked-"

"I KNOW! I KNOW! I KNOW!"

The words broke him into another silence. Sasori stared wide eyed. Again with the interruptions? Deidara glared at him coldly, a real glare, a look that Sasori had never seen before. Normally, the child could never muster up anything that ever scared the puppeteer so much since the incident with his chest mouth. Now though, Deidara instilled a hint of fear into him.

"I get it! I know you don't care!" Deidara spoke in a low tone, almost like a grumble. "I'm not like Hidan, or Itachi, but it doesn't change anything!" His robe slipped from the child's grip. Deidara took a few determined steps back. It wasn't even as if he was looking at Sasori anymore, like there was no one in the room. "I'm not as weak as you think. I'm stronger now danna. I'm not scared anymore."

There it was. That look, that will to live, the fire in his eye. Sasori could see it as plain as day, probably better than anyone could ever see. There was no room for argument, even though the redhead had over a million things that he could fire back at the child, he had a feeling that none of them would change his mind. Sasori resisted scolding him. There was no point arguing with an eleven year old. He had been similar as a boy. His grandmother could no longer control him after that age. "You really want to help me?"

He received a pronounced nod. Sasori could have sighed and closed his eyes. "Fine then, but I'll warn you. Around this time of the year, it's pretty misty and cold. Bundle up."

Once he opened his eyes, he was met with a gleeful smile and a bright face. Deidara practically swung his head up and down before bolting down the short hall to get ready. Sasori watched him disappear into the closet usually cluttered with extra cloaks and boxes. He strolled over to his work area and settled himself by his desk.

Quick footfalls came from the short hall and the boy emerged with a dark navy cloak, a hood pulled over his head. Deidara spared a short wave before twisting the nob of the door and throwing it open to make way outside. Sasori only observed as his subordinate disappeared behind the door frame, his quick light footsteps echoing down the damp corridor.

Sasori stood up and sauntered towards the exit to peer down the hall. His footsteps began to echo as well, but he barely payed any mind as he rested his hand on the door knob. Sasori tilted his head slightly.

"You're not really planning on sending Deidara out on his own are you?" Tobi leaned against the wall behind the door. His arms were crossed, his voice as high-pitched as usual. "That's just not how Sasori works."

"Of course not," Sasori pulled the door back towards the room, "Just because I can't say anything doesn't mean I can't do anything. Go after him." I won't be as weak as that old hag. I have control. He dragged the door closed.

_Click_

Tobi jolted up and saluted like a young soldier. "Yes, sir!"

* * *

_(Naruto Shippuden Movie 3 OST Track – 10 "The Mark")_

_I'm finally doing something!_ Deidara felt it, the wind in his face, the freedom of control over his own movement, not pulling himself to walk in someone's footsteps. This was his own little adventure, no room for error. Deidara felt happy to do something of his own accord. Surely, if he performed well enough, Pein may notice him.

Deidara landed on a branch and took a moment to take in the forest sounds all around him. No hurry. Hidan was immortal wasn't he? Surely a few gashes wouldn't kill him. Kakuzu was strong as well, and the blond believed him to have even less to fear than Sasori did from his own creations. The blond couldn't help but feel a smile creep up on his face but he resisted.

He huffed and straightened his back, head held tall. If he wanted to join, he had to act like an Akatsuki. Deidara remembered often how the others would act. They were all calm and cool-headed. Though he hated to admit it, Itachi was a good example. Then again, he wouldn't go as far as to mimic his stoic face and monotonous tone. As an artist, being original was crucial.

"I'm cool, I'm calm." Deidara murmured to himself. He smirked. "I'm done sitting around. Danna will be proud, and switch the back seat with Itachi!" He lowered and bounded off into the brush. Just ahead over the tree line, a large thick wispy cloud covered the land ahead.

In the trees just a few meters away, Tobi stood up from his crouched position and rested both hands on his hips. The branch barely buckled under his weight, almost as if it were carrying nothing at all. Even the birds nesting failed to notice his presence. "Well, well, Nagato got what he wanted, a loyal follower...sort of." _More of a follower to Sasori than anyone else. _

He sighed and bounded after the boy. As the trees flew by, he couldn't help but wonder what the organization had come to. Deidara was their first unplanned recruit, a child at that. Normally, along with Nagato and Konan, they held the organization in an iron grip, keeping the gates closed to all whom they did not welcome. It was not hard to instill such a mentality into the Ame duo. After the wars their village had suffered along with a civil war to top it off, the two had no arguments with keeping to a plan. They wanted control, and Tobi knew that when Deidara first came along, there had been a bit of confusion.

* * *

_"A child? So what?" Pein gazed coolly over towards the masked-man. His legs swung over the edge of the pod, the glass cover slid to the side. Elsewhere within the room were five more large pods, each one containing the separate paths, ringed eyes lifelessly staring at the cold ceiling. Pein held a tube in his hand, disconnected from the pod to the wall. Several tubes and wires ran across the walls and snaked to each pod, funnelling a fume that prevented decay from taking over while no chakra was being received. "If it's Sasori, then I won't have to interfere. He'll probably use the boy as test subject, or as a puppet."_

_ Tobi frowned underneath his mask, "That's not what I was getting at."He earned a curious look from the ginger. In the dark room, he could just barely see the shine in his eyes and the outline of his hair under the pale light of the outside. A small glassless window pushed up to the ceiling. Several pigeons sat there, observing the scene. "He wants to use the boy as a subordinate; more than that, he'd like to take him under his wing."_

_ "A student?" Pein raised a brow. His normally monotonous tone took a bit of dip at the very word, "Is that what he wants?"_

_ "In that sense, yes," Tobi leaned on a single leg, "I have no idea what brought this on."_

_ The Akatsuki leader stood up and discarded the useless tube to the floor, "Interesting. I'd like to observe them for a few days if possible. Also, I want to meet the child myself, so I'll have him come here." _

_ Tobi shook his head. "I've already done some research, there's more to the child than that. He's from Iwagakure, more specifically a former student who previously was taught under the third Tsuchikage."_

_ "Iwagakure?" Pein breathed, the very name itself lit a dangerous fire in his eye, "Is this a favour from their government? Handing over someone so valuable. What do they want in return?"_

_ "Nothing. The child is no favour," Tobi emphasized, "Just a defector."_

_ The Akatsuki Leader blinked."How old is this child?"_

_ "No older than ten. Zetsu estimates his age to be around eight at most." The masked man held his chin on his thumb. "Are you willing to welcome him? This organization has no use for children."_

_ Pein raised his head, "Perhaps not. However, I cannot ignore that he's been trained under a Kage." His gaze fell on the other male curiously. "Children are often said to be the destiny of this world. They are born to experience the present, then shape what is to be known as the future. If Sasori is so determined to have a child on board, I wouldn't mind gaining such power."_

_ "Old folk chatter," Tobi waved it off. "However nice that may sound, I'm leaning towards killing the boy. Whiny children are bothersome. The future we speak of is far closer than the one that old coots dream of. It's within this generation's grasp," He raised an open hand slowly up to shoulder height by his face, then pulled it into a fist as if he'd crushed the entire world. _

_ The two exchanged long stares as the coos of pigeons retreating and docking the window ledge filled the silence. It wasn't unusual for disagreements to pop up between them, but Pein knew that Tobi always had the final word; be it he finally agreed or not. _

_ "Regardless, I want to observe them for a while. For now however, Itachi is a larger concern." The Akatsuki Leader broke eye contact and drifted towards the door. "I still haven't figured out the next task for him before he's drafted in."_

* * *

It was a short and simple conversation. Tobi hadn't regretted letting Nagato win for this one. If it weren't for the boy, discovering Orochimaru's plans for their organization would have been difficult and the they might have gone down the dark path; a path where Orochimaru might have had more than just plans for Itachi and Sasori, but perhaps the downfall of the entire organization.

Actually, he couldn't say for they had completely avoided that problem. He highly doubted the snake was dead after the group attack. Though he was impressed that Itachi's Amaterasu had developed as far as it did, like the jutsu that Deidara possesses within his body, the sharingan doesn't fully mature for as long as the user is still a child. Spanning a full-seven days of burning was something only the very best sharingan user in history, Madara Uchiha, could achieve. Itachi would likely never achieve a full day until he's become physically grown, usually at the age of eighteen to twenty. A rookie's Amaterasu lasts a few split seconds, while a fairly experienced user; a minute or two. Tobi had little to go on for how much he could expect from the younger Uchiha, but knowing some of Orochimaru's durability, the chances of him being deceased reached far below thirty percent.

Tobi caught up to the boy and kept a constant distance of a few meters in the brush. Deidara was moving at a fast pace for even a jonin, evidence that he could definitely keep up. Holding a grin as the wind blasted his face, the child held no error in his posture. Tobi slowed to match his speed. _If this child is completely serious about joining, then I won't refuse Nagato. However, things must change if that's truly what he wants._ He turned back to the road ahead, trusting that the boy knew the way. _Whatever change that may be, it's not something even I can bring on with full certainty. I still cannot say for sure that this adventure will last much longer._

_ I'm sure even Pein's noticed by now, what Konan has known since the beginning._

* * *

_Click..._

_ Click, clack..._

_ Click, click, click..._

_ Fssss..._

A hand drifted over the piece, a forearm, while the other hand caressed the smooth wood. Fingers lightly tapped the texture underneath the dusty light, then glided over a small crack in the surface.

The hand froze.

Lazy eyes widened momentarily and focused solely on the crack. Imperfections. The hand felt around the rest of the piece, thumb pressed to the first fissure as if to label it. More, more, more and more were found along the edges. Unacceptable, completely unacceptable. How could he ever hope to create his masterpiece if the arm was flawed? Such a horrid crime would stain the beauty of this project, and tarnish its eternal form. He'd been working on this one for so long, at the very least the boy wasn't here to see him destroy it.

_CRASH_

His hand slammed the piece into the table, wide eyes observing the wooden splints shatter and fly in the air, larger fragments sliding off the table and plummeting towards the cold stone floor.

_Fuck, fuck, fuck, useless, all of it. _

He'd have to restart. A few years had already taken a toll on the materials; and as long as his subject kept going as it did, the window of opportunity of which a true puppet of his own could be created slowly drew to a close. He'd decided a long time ago. Why did he ever doubt himself? If he did it before, he wouldn't have to worry later. He'd kept himself waiting -no, he kept _them_ waiting. He kept Deidara waiting too, and that was the most important part.

"It's coming soon." Sasori murmured and stared at the ceiling. _I would love to see him grow up but..._

This comes first.

* * *

_(Naruto Shippuden Movie 3 OST Track 11 - "Evening Primrose")_

"_You have plenty of time, I doubt they'll arrive before it's noon_," Zetsu observed the child raise from his spot for the night. It was a short sleep, just four or five hours before the sky began to lighten from a darkened navy to a light baby blue.

A hand felt around the floor and finally came across a ribbon. He grabbed the ribbon and pressed it to the side of his head before pausing. Deidara blinked for a moment, eyes still groggy with sleep before he realized plainly: he couldn't tie his own hair. A frustrated growl escaped his lips. How stupid, of all the tasks he was capable of alone, he needed Sasori to do such a simple task for him. Tying hair. So simple, so painfully simple.

Well, he didn't like it tied up anyway. He didn't need it right now, he didn't need Sasori to coddle him anymore. Deidara sucked in a breath and settled for his old low ponytail. Better than nothing, and he'd be humiliated to even consider going all the way back just to tend to something as petty as his hair.

His hand weaved through the strands and he attempted to get a start. Deidara twisted his torso slightly to get at the locks. Meanwhile, he kept a steady gaze on Zetsu. Strangely, the grass ninja decided to pay him a visit this morning. Of course, the first thing that came to the child's mind when they met again was that he visited on his master's orders. Zetsu had denied th notion and claimed that he'd been passing by and found it curious that the boy was all alone by himself, not a single Akatsuki member within a few tens of meters. Zetsu had thought he got lost, and kindly offered to lead him to the nearest hideout. That's when he told him of course. A mission for himself, not official, but a mission in his own mind. The news had surprised Zetsu predictably, and to Deidara's delight.

"_Why didn't Sasori just come himself? _**_No need to get you involved_,**" Both sides pondered aloud.

Deidara tied the knot and stood up to pat down his clothes. He felt a little happier with a companion by his side, but no partner either. Just a friendly acquaintance, and he rather preferred Zetsu's neutrality towards him as opposed to Sasori's rather protective nature or Itachi's standoff-ish personality. Small talk was his style.

"Danna asked me to do it so he wouldn't get in trouble with Leader." The blond barely hesitated and spoke confidently. It wasn't true of course, but his tongue was numb to the guilt, much to drunk on pride and excitement. He raised his chin in a superior manner, a cocky grin crept on his face. "The studio was stuffy anyway."

"_Ah-but_," Zetsu was interrupted when the boy appeared in front of him, face inches from his own. Deidara leaned forward conceitedly and shot him a look that defined inferiority.

"You're not doubting me are you, un?" Deidara spoke in a low threatening tone. Something about the way it came out appealed to him somehow, and the added 'un' at the end of it only served to make himself sound more menacing. That sounded great!

"_**Why wouldn't I?** Such a killjoy_," White Zetsu snapped out of his feigned fear and commented on black, "_**You're just a kid. Even if you are a ninja, it's ideal to have a squad.**_"

"A squad?" Deidara straightened and smirked, clapping his hands together. His palms throbbed momentarily as the child's smirk grew. Zetsu blinked and watched as he pried his hands apart and held them face down, a long string of gooey clay dangling from the mouths. Deidara drew his arms further apart until the string of clay stretched to the floor. A few inches from the short grass, little buds seemed to grow from the surface of the clay. The buds grew, gaining features such as holes for eyes and long appendages for limbs. One bud had two buds grow from it, so tightly put together that when it burst into a larger size, they may formed to halves of a head. The creatures crawled on the ground and almost slithered away from the thinning string of clay until about seven different animals the size of small dogs

The string broke off from the mouths and flopped to the ground. It didn't remain stationary as the clay was slowly absorbed into the tails of the sculptures. Another improvement Deidara had been able to make after three years. He marvelled at his most early development after he discovered his horrid lack of talent with puppets. With little to go on in terms of ideas at the time, he simply mimicked what he knew of Sasori's skill. Chakra strings were nearly impossible for him, not to mention highly dangerous. However, strings of clay with high concentrations of chakra were easy to adapt to. His mouths had the largest amount of stored chakra next to the core of his chakra system. Such a supply would ordinarily be unheard of, but thanks to Deidara's jutsu, it was possible. He spent a full year when he turned 9 to work on this skill, but accidentally broke off one of his clay strings leading him to discover the mental connection he had with his sculptures. It wasn't as if he hadn't known about this before; he knew for a fairly long time already that he could just 'know' if a sculpture had been tampered with. However, he had strengthened this connection with Sasori's help, and eventually learned to animate them. This wasn't a fruit of Sasori's teachings however, simply a self-taught skill he played around with on his own until he realized what he was doing.

The creatures stood still in line, like a little army. Deidara rested his hands on his hips proudly. "I'm pretty happy with this one. This is my squad, un!"

Zetsu tilted his head slightly and leaned forward to get a better look at the small 'team'._ I'm still not quite sure with this..._

* * *

_(Naruto Shippuden Movie 4 OST 25 - "Warrior")_

**_Jashinism_**

In a time before all things known. Before the second world war, where blood was spilt upon the sand. When two parents cried out hopelessly as they were slayed, leaving their lone child to sit alone at home with a playful smile. Before the the building was built where the Kage's stood tall, clad in their white clothes. Each hat brandishing the first number placed upon the table to found and settle the creation of the five great nations, the five great hidden village's, doomed to war. Before the village's, there was an era of eternal fighting. Death, disease, battle, a warring states era only told of in the records of history, textbooks read to only the most curious of children.

Before any of that, before anyone had ever tongued the word 'shinobi' and 'ninja'. A time all the way back before the Sage of Six Path's created 'ninshu'. A time no longer repeated by even oldest of all elders.

Jashinism was born.

In a time at the dawn of humanity, in order to survive, one would had to fight. Fighting was all there was, the shedding of blood was common. In world where no one knew the meaning of true peace, violence was hailed beyond all. In the fires of the damned, humans were driven to their deaths, adults, elders, children, newborns, all drenched in the life liquid known as blood. In a world that would drive even the most determined to insanity, blood became holy.

With no one to turn to, the people cried out and a single word passed between their lips. The opposite of death.

_**Immortality**_

* * *

**A/N: Sorry for lack of updates! I just got my science midterm over with, so I prioritized it over all(still got a bad mark though...). Yes, the signature 'un' finally becomes a _bit_ significant! I've written it in before, but I feel like it's time I throw it in. Jashinism has always had me curious, but it disappointed me when there was barely anything to go on concerning the religion. I'm not sure where but somewhere, it's confirmed that Hidan isn't the only practitioner. I've done a lot of thinking about it lately and whelp, I've created an entire fucking history to this thing. **

**Thanks for reading! Nice to meet ya! Happy Valentines day!**


	49. Immortality

"This is all useless material." Sasori placed the candle onto the small tabletop. He turned to moved his gaze over the many book shelves lined up neatly in rows. The darkness of the room made him squint slightly, the small glow of the light serving to do little to rid of the shadows. It didn't matter to him really, Sasori preferred the dark. Dark meant quiet, calm, productivity.

Several used books lay stacked next to the flickering candle, about six or seven reaching up to Sasori's shoulder. Within their contents, one could easily spy dog-eared pages and several coloured tabs placed between the sheets now wrinkled and dusty with age. Sasori patted away the dust on the top book. The cover by now was torn and fluffy, not as well bind as textbooks were dressed nowadays. It was more of type Sasori remembered seeing as a child, metal corners preventing the outer layer from stripping after use. Though the corners hadn't aged too much, the rest of the book had fallen prey to it. The spine was soft and the pages easily broke off and tore. Sasori remembered plainly looking through this collection during his early days in the Akatsuki. He was almost obsessed with them when Orochimaru introduced the group to his stash. Sasori was no avid reader, but he was highly interested in the subject area of these research books.

Well, he didn't need them anymore. Orochimaru didn't seem to need them either, since Sasori found no trouble locating them from where he last put them away. The snake hadn't tampered with them since, so the redhead assumed he moved on from this silly topic. Regardless, Sasori had a real Jashinist on his hands now, so perhaps these would come to some use to the organization. Pein might accept them as an apology, and maybe the tension between them could finally be put to rest. Sasori considered the thought. Pein would probably need these more than him right now. Unlike the Akatsuki leader, the puppeteer knew much more about Jashinists than the ginger probably did. Jashinism was rare nowadays, so rare that the religion was recorded to be extinct by the majority of history writers. Pein had no idea what he was dealing with. Sasori could tell immediately by the way that the other tried to suppress Hidan's beliefs in the meeting.

With Deidara off on errands, Sasori had some time to himself. His personal library had not destroyed since the room was so far off. He had certainly lost some books in the incident, but he barely remembered what they were even about by now. He believed he could manage, a small loss like this didn't mean much. One puppet was gone, but having just reached his 200 milestone, it was simply nothing but a small scratch on his pride and joy.

Sasori pulled up a wooden chair and sat down. _Might as well take a last look and select what goes and what doesn't, metal parts need time to cool off_. After the failure of the wooden parts, the least Sasori could do was take a break from carving and simply do to the other half until he felt up and ready again.

He picked up the first book and flipped to the table of contents. After gazing over the lists, he leafed to the first chapter, a basic introduction to the Warring States era and its end to lead towards the first creation of the shinobi villages. Sasori remembered receiving this book from an old book binder he met on his travels in the Land of Wind; all before the Akatsuki. The old woman handed it over after hearing about his interest in the first puppeteer ninja, Monzaemon Chikamatsu. She had little use for the textbook anyway, so she had no qualms with giving it off. Sasori had withheld any grudges he had towards old women after she so kindly let him take it. He almost found it funny how hard it was to keep his respects when the lady's appearance so strongly reminded him of his grandmother.

_Chapter 4_

_The record of a cult only known as Jashinism arose..._

Sasori kept his hand stamped to the page. One of the small pictures depicted a man naked of clothing, sending a steely stare into the camera. It wasn't a real Jashinist of course, but a model meant to represent one. By the time this book was in production, finding a real Jashinist would not only have been taxing, but extremely dangerous.

_Jashinists are mainly identified by a pendant around their neck with the symbol depicting a circle with an inverted triangle. They tend to be stereotyped with traits of high-aggression, disregard for safety, and lastly murderous intentions._ Sounded like Hidan. The last time Sasori met with him, the young male was doing just that. Screaming his head off to Kakuzu and swinging his scythe around like a stick while doing so. The pendant wasn't hard to find, right around his neck where it should be. That encounter hadn't ended so well. Hidan noticed him watching and began to speak to him with a rather vulgar tone of speech. By the end of the day, it wasn't Kakuzu that landed the boy in recovery.

_The religions origins can be traced back to a time before chakra in **** - ****. Death and disease ran rampant around the dawn of humankind. It was speculated that due to the horrid conditions humans had to suffer through daily life, many turned to worship. It was believed some became intoxicated with the violence and turned to a god called Jashin._

Sasori skimmed over the paragraph and skipped to the section that described their rituals. Just looking at it, page 203, felt taxing. Of all the unnecessarily sleepless nights he spent during that year, a good 3rd of it was spent obsessing over this page. He had heard and read about Jashinist's apparent 'immortality'. The subject interested him at the time, when he was just adjusting to his first prosthetic arm. The one he had now wasn't that one, but in an improved version he created about...five years ago.

_One of their signature and most common rituals known as ****** involves using their victim's blood to draw a diagram on the ground. The individual performing this ritual stands within the triangle and inflicts bodily harm upon themselves in prayer to Jashin...There are other rituals where the individual must bleed themselves for 50 days in order to prove themselves worthy of priesthood. Many more uncommon rituals often have to do with elevating rank. Those selected may be subject to one of the only rituals which usually involve 10-15 performers. This ritual is referred to as **** and is said to grant the subject immortality. However, in such a ritual, it requires the sacrifice of all performers...immortality at this time is supposedly temporary and the subject must prove themselves worthy of it by sacrificing the same number of victims as the number of people used in the ritual. If one was able to complete this trial within a 40 day period, they are said to be granted lasting immortality._

The puppeteer didn't think much of the rituals themselves. Of course, he wasn't stupid; he wouldn't dare bleed himself for more than a few minutes. The human body could survive letting but once the blood loss rose to 40% of the total supply, it was considered life-threatening. One of the down-sides to Sasori's puppet body had to be his vulnerability. His heart case contained 48% of his original supply when he was in a real body, all it really needed. However, it also meant that wounds were that much more devastating. If he bled a cup, it would be life threatening. That didn't even add the risk of infection, which was highly dangerous due to how rapidly and quickly it could infect his entire heart container. Surgery was out of the question as well, since doing so could kill him without the rest of the body to support himself. Sasori had little options when he read about the ritual, and he no intention of performing it.

At the time when he was in a better relationship with Orochimaru, the two were fascinated by the idea, or well, the snake coaxed him into it. Sasori originally scoffed at the text and labelled it nothing more as the antics of radicals. He didn't believe in such a thing, and thought the snake was stupid for taking an interest at all. It wasn't until his former partner finally presented his theory to him to the biological aspects of the ritual did the puppeteer spare any sort of thought to the inner workings of it. At the time, he took the accounts of immortality seriously, and thought that perhaps if he could simulate something similar, bodily harm would no longer be a risk to himself. Of course, he still required an organ to keep him alive, but wounds would mean nothing. It wasn't until Kakuzu told him a few weeks ago that the accounts were usually false did Sasori realize how useless much of his research had been.

_Immortality in Jashinism is still a debated topic among skeptics. One known fact about how the practitioners chose who would receive it involved eye colour. The majority of immortals recorded in historical text usually described a character with red, purple, or pink irises. Practitioners associated the colour with the crimson hue of blood and saw it as a sign from their god that this person was blessed._

Eye colour. Sasori had found this fact unusual when he first read about it. Though he was doubtful about it, he researched connections eye colours had to biological functions anyway. Eye colour, as he discovered, did have an impact on an individuals chakra system since moment of birth, but it was minimal, point three percent at the very highest. Those who had blue or greenish eyes tended to have more wind chakra users within the gene pool. Now that he thought about it, Deidara was bue-eyed as well. Though Sasori had checked and he knew for a fact that the kid had no affinity for anything within the wind element, he knew that Deidara had a strangely acute sense of air currents, allowing him to quickly adapt to flying. Sasori was never fond of it when he made Deidara a subject of his research and projects, but now that he thought was there, he could barely ignore it. He'd put away the thought to the back of his mind for now.

Hidan indeed had one of these three selections, a hot pink. Sasori had actually noticed it early on when he first saw the boy, and now the theories of the text were somewhat confirmed. Hidan was living proof of it. Sasori would have sighed, this was a lot of stuff to go through. He turned to look at the stack of books staring right back at him. Books weren't ninja, they couldn't do anything harmful to him, and yet, they were just as intimidating. This would take a long time.

* * *

**Immortality**

A few years Earlier

His eyes.

Hidan never thought much of the colour of his eyes. Whenever he viewed himself in a mirror, he never took note of his irises, much more concerned with his tired state in the morning and how he'd make himself presentable for another day at the academy he attended. After an ice-cold wash, his pores would tighten and the sleepiness that hung over his lids finally shed, revealing a livelier looking child who held up his torso with his arms to reach the mirror. Legs dangling over the table as he held his breath to inspect himself.

Your average 9 year old, Hidan wasn't any different than any other child born into Yugakure. That day, he grabbed a bowl of natto off the counter with a frown and begrudgingly finished it at the table. His mother was a village councillor, so the two only chatted about the morning briefly before she would watch her son hop off the chair and dump the dishes into the sink. Before he could escape out the door with his book bag, she would ask sternly if he'd finished his homework, to which she'd only a get a sarcastic nod in reply. Hidan barely made a goodbye and closed the door shut, hurrying out the front door to meet up with his classmates walking along the main village street. From there, he would blend in with the herd of children marching towards the institute in the morning.

Throughout their school day, they would fill out worksheets and sit at their desks. Hidan would sit alongside everyone else and watch as their instructor droned on. Fingers drumming against the wood and antsy legs shifted beneath their seats. It would all come to end though when the clock struck 11 am, the time to begin Taijutsu training.

For two hours straight, beginning with a ten minute warm-up of 10 laps around the field, Hidan never complained, and simply talked idly with his friends to pass the time. In the higher levels, the practice would steadily rise fro 10 laps to a hundred by their fifth year. Such a time never really came across the minds of the youngsters however, more excited about the war souvenirs their parents had brought home from their previous mission. This month, there had been no casualties, so every student came to school with a glint in their eye and something to show to their comrades.

Those were the early days. A time when the village prospered more, but times wouldn't always be so easy. Hidan hadn't always enjoyed the peace.

"Eh?" Hidan slowly pried open the small pouch. He probably shouldn't have been here in his parent's rooms, snooping about like a fox in a badger den. All the other kids had something to show today, and this year, the child was one of the few who had nothing to present. In reality, it didn't matter, but Hidan wanted something to show for himself.

Their room was a neat and dreary place. Greyish walls with a tint of green on them was a colour that made the boy want to gag. There were cooler colours out there, so he'd gone off and painted his room purple. He'd saved up enough from his allowance, so after some conversation with his mother, his room was a box in purple. Unlike this room, which was empty and had little furniture save for a kotatsu, old brown dresser, and a weapons display specially for his father. Hidan knew his parents weren't fond of decor, but it didn't mean he was the same. Hidan's parents preferred simplicity, but the boy preferred more along the lines of intricacy. So to find such an obviously decorative object in their room, it piqued his curiosity.

The boy moved from a low crouch to a sitting position. He eyed the clock from the corner of his vision and slowly lifted the object, dangling it's long beaded thread in his hands. It was a pendant of sorts, blue marbles stringed up on a silver chain. It could almost have been black, since the metal seemed to be coated in a strange dried up substance. Hidan inspected the large symbol at the bottom. A circle with what looked to be an unusual shape in the middle. The red paint had suffered, no longer a glossy crimson but a flaking brown with little patches to indicate it had seen better days. The other half of the symbol was broken off, possibly in battle.

Hidan let the rest of the necklace drop to the floor and simply tinkered with the symbol. It held no meaning to him, just another ninja symbol like the Konoha leaf and or ANBU mask swirls. This was the first he'd seen of this one, but it wasn't alone with all of the new things he'd seen from his classmates. Hidan hovered his chubby fingers over the rusted circle, then drew over the corner of the break where the circle was chipped.

"Agh!" Hidan winced and recoiled his hand. Immediately, he turned to look at his finger, watching in slight fascination as a bead of blood welled up from his skin, glistening slightly in the evening light. Just a small cut, nothing major. The boy groaned and plopped his finger in his mouth instinctively, eyes focused back on the insanely keen edge.

_So sharp..._

"Dad must've brought this home," Hidan blinked and dangled the pendant over his head, watching as the light bounced off the metal and wavered, "I wonder why he didn't tell me about it." He murmured.

He dropped the pendant and caught it again, enclosing the beads in his fist. His fingers slowly fanned open, revealing the glossy new texture of the light blue orbs. They seemed new compared to the rest of the object, almost untouched. Hidan was so engrossed into his staring that he failed to notice the sounds of keys ringing outside in the hall, and the a low chatter. Footfalls followed and paused briefly, a questioning sound coming from whomever was in the corridor. The other peeked through the door, and immediately walked in, standing behind the young boy.

"What are you doing in my room, Hidan?"

Hidan squeaked in surprise before whirling around to be met with the darkening expression of his father leaning over him. The man was not a mean guy to begin with, but something about the aura he gave off signalled to the academy student that he'd really struck a nerve.

"GET OUT!"

* * *

"This is not something you should bring to the academy, it's dangerous."

His father set at the table, the strange pendant grasped in his hand displayed to his young son. Hidan stood idly just a few meters away, eyeing the object with a strange fascination. He pressed his lips together into a pout and moved his gaze to meet his father's eyes, a strange steeliness in them. He shifted his weight on the floor.

"Sorry..." He forced the words out of his mouth. He felt no shame to find such an object. It was just a necklace, why was his dad taking it so seriously? What was it? Worth a million ryo?

His mother watched from her place at the table, peeking over a newspaper from that morning. Her hair was still in a neat bun, having just come back from a meeting with the village council. She kept a wary eye on her child, switching between the boy and the pendant. Something stirred in her gut to see the very object. Honestly, if the man didn't want their nosey kid to be touching it, why even bring it home? Their room was sparse only because Hidan had a habit of getting into anything and everything no matter where it was hidden. Regardless, she felt eager to get into conversation with her husband. The council had finally decided.

"Okay? Leave it alone," Hidan's father slipped the item into his ninja vest and turned back to the table. "I'm sure the other kids have far more interesting souvenirs."

"Sooorry!" Hidan groaned sarcastically. His parents simple sighed and went on about the evening while they could.

The boy rolled his eyes and dragged himself back to the hallway. He needed to get out of this dreary atmosphere, he had to homework to do after all. School was a pain, but if he wanted to be a cool ninja, he needed to graduate. Hidan slowly sauntered to the back of the house, making sure to restrain from appearing to run away. This was annoying, so, so, annoying. Even when he arrived to his door and nearly slammed it shut, the sound of it was annoying.

A year later

"They're turning red, that means-"

"It's not a threat, as long as he knows how terrible they are-"

Voices. Hidan had overheard them while he was pretending to sleep. He sat in the corner of his room by the door, legs folded up to his chest, ear pressed to the wall as he attempted to decipher the partial mumbling that came after that. The boy didn't have to try very hard, the dead silence in his room save for the crickets chirping and the small chatter of those who strolled about easily covered his eavesdropping. Hidan knew his parents were ninja, but he also knew they weren't psychics.

Anyway, what about his eyes? He wondered if his parents would get worried one day. Starting two months after his ninth birthday, Hidan had failed to notice the strange crimson colour leak into his irises. His eyes were normally a dark colour, a dark grey since birth like his mother. It wasn't until his eyes were almost completely covered in the red did Hidan notice one day. Hidan thought nothing of it at first. Strange eye colours weren't unusual. He knew some people who had blue, green, and even yellowish eyes. Surely red wasn't something to call home about, of course, unless it meant he had contracted a disease. Hidan could only wonder if the red meant blood was leaking after the thought. He'd heard of internal bleeding in class before, where the body was wounded on the inside.

"Do you think...do you think it has to do with the pendant you brought back?" Hidan recognized the stern voice of his mother. She seemed hesitant almost fearful. The boy shifted his feet and leaned closer to the door. Why was his mother so scared? She was making him scared just to think of it.

The pendant? What pendant?

"That's ridiculous! It's just an old rusty war spoil, not some diseased rat."

_That pendant?_ The very mention reminded him of the old item that got him in trouble last year. He'd already forgotten about it by now, but what about it? His parents still had it? What for? What was the big deal? Hidan switched positions and knelt by the door, desperate to hear more. His parents occasionally came out in the middle of night, it was not strange for the to do so, but when he heard his name, Hidan couldn't help but wonder.

He heard his mother sigh heavily. The boy could practically see her shake her head and pinch the bridge of her nose while his father still remained a bit stunned. She spoke a few more incomprehensible words, then her voice raised to something he could decipher.

"-inists. Anyway, it might not be safe for him. I heard that word got out about the council's plans. We're worried, there may be a backlash from them."

"I don't have a problem with it. I'm tired of being a ninja, especially since it's so peaceful. Then again, you do have a point..."

Plans? What plans? Hidan was taken aback by his father's words. Stop being a ninja? Why would he want that? He wasn't old, just in his late thirties, barely an age to retire. Hidan slowly and stiffly rose to his feet, eyes wide. He took a step back, then another, then ran to his bed, never caring that his footfalls practically rang throughout the house.

"What was that?"

"Hidan! Is he awake, did he hear us?!"

Hidan threw himself onto the bed and yanked the blankets over himself. The cold pillow felt good against his his heated head, back faced towards the door, gaze directed towards the window. No, no, no, his dad wasn't that lame! Stop being a ninja? Then what? Start a stupid business selling Takoyaki?

_Click_

The creaking of the wooden floor followed, and Hidan could spy the hallway light reflect on the window. The sounds came closer, the hesitant grunts from his father hovered over his bed. Hidan tried to relax his expression and appear to be asleep, grasping the blankets tighter beneath his fingers.

"Hidan? Were you awake?"

_No, no I wasn't._

A weight pushed on the bed. The next thing he knew, a hand was gently shaking his shoulder. He could practically feel his father's gaze on him, and he quietly wondered if his mother was there as well. Deciding not to resist, Hidan slowly looked over his shoulder to meet the eyes of his father. The man momentarily faltered at the sight of him, or perhaps his eyes in particular.

Hidan kept a deep frown, "Dad, I thought you liked being a ninja."

"Ah, well..." The man sucked in a nervous breath and broke eye contact, "I do, I love it."

The boy threw the blankets off and sat up, "Then why do you want to quit!? Huh?"

His father furrowed his eyebrows at him, attempting to make an angry face but couldn't. The man bit his lip and looked at his son squarely. "Last year, some plans were made for the village, for Yugakure."

* * *

_(Naruto Shippuden Movie OST 28 - Wailing)_

Chatter again. The usual classroom in the morning, filled with early birds of students. Hidan sat at his desk idly, hands pulled into fists. He refrained from showing his anger, his confusion. His eyes were draw to his desk, then gazed up at the clock at the front of the lively classroom. The minute hand rested to the south while the hour hand was a just few paces to the left. Just a little further to go before class started.

_"Being a ninja here in times like these, they've become hard. I'll try to make it easy to understand- the clans, it isn't profitable to remain here for them."_

_"Why? What are you talking about? We're not part of a clan."_

_"Please, just hear me out Hidan."_

"-I'm leaving."

The boy snapped out of his thoughts. Next to his desk, a little boy stood with his backpack slung over his shoulder. That brown-haired kid, that was the class genius. Hidan gazed over, joining the rest of the students who all turned the same way. All eyes were focused on the boy, standing up from his seat. Two students were turned in the desks in front of them, a look of hesitation on their faces.

"I'm sorry, I-I just came here to say goodbye." The class genius made a sad smile, waving off his two friends.

The female of his friends shot up in her seat and almost slammed the desk with her hands. "Hold on! Where are you going?! Why?"

The boy paused in his step, then turned back to the class, "My clan, they've decided to move. I don't know where we're going yet."

_Their clan's moving?!_ Hidan sweated slightly and twisted in his spot. The boy turned back towards the classroom exit and continued up the buckling stairs, its sound seemingly lonely in the room. The child rounded the back of the classroom and walked out the door, his footfalls echoing into a silence.

_"Since the Third world war, our village has weakened significantly in the face of the great nations. Our services can't compete, so missions are all sent to those village's and not ours."_

_"So! Why can't we just get stronger!? Don't we have any pride!?"_

_"I'm sorry, but it's not that simple. Whatever pride there is, people need money to survive. If the clans can't get the funds they need, they only have two choices. Stay and starve, or leave and find another village who could put their services to better use."_

_"Money? Isn't that just a vice of ninja? Money, women, those kinds of things!?"_

It was evening, and the winter season caused the sun to set prematurely. Hidan strolled out of class that day, hands in his pockets, usual grey short-sleeved jacket on. Already, at the academy yard, he could see several parents and their children. Probably, the first or second year students.

Close to the exit, a girl joined up with her father, linking hands with him and strolling off with happy faces. Hidan stared at them for a moment, slightly relieved by the scene. Everything was fine, no need to get worked up over a single student. That kid didn't have a choice, and it was only one clan. The people of Yugakure had pride. Just cause they were a little low of cash didn't mean anything, the strong would remain loyal if they were true citizens.

_"Things are changing. The world wasn't the same as it used to be. Your generation may not even be ninja. Not here, not where ninja can't profit any money to support themselves."_

_"Then...then what's gonna happen?"_

_"We're downsizing. Yugakure is our old name. Our new name is the Village That has Forgotten Wars. We want peace, Hidan, not violence."_

* * *

**A/N: Aaand we begin this arc. Don't worry, I plan to make this arc waaay shorter(I mean just about two or three chapters) than the 'Dei in the Past' thing. Doing it this way hits two birds with one stone here, so I'm just hoping it works. I apologize for posting so late at night!(At least here it is) I'm actually trying to work with a new beta but stuff came up. I hope this a good start! I'm really getting back into the swing of things!(Scratches head awkwardly)**

**Thanks for reading! Please review if you'd like! I appreciate any feedback at the moment of the new arc!**


	50. The Prophet

**The Prophet**

"Your eyes look weird, are you okay?" The girl whispered.

Hidan simply looked at her with a puzzled expression, wondering for a moment if they've grown that noticeable. The little child continued to stare at him, a look of concern and curiosity crossing her expression.

The boy blinked and looked up at the ceiling, "It's just a weird shade of brown."

"Brown?" The girl exclaimed, hopping on the spot. She squinted and curled a hand around her face. Her reaction surprised the student, who returned to her with a new found surprise. "No way, it's pink!"

_Pink!?_ The word echoed in his mind.

_RIIIINNNNGGG_

That was the class bell, marking the end of recess. The children in the yard dropped their toys and hopped off the benches, making a tiny stampede towards the academy door. Hidan stood among them, watching as the girl who asked disappeared into the crowd of fellow students, rushing by like water against a rock. Hidan ignored the occasional shoves or bumps he received from standing in the way, too caught up with the thought that something was dearly wrong with eyes.

Finally, Hidan received a rather hard push, knocking him down to the ground as he yelped in surprise. The next thing he knew, the children running towered over him, ignoring his attempts to get up only to feel the sting of his elbow. Hidan switched supporting his body with his other arm as he twisted to get a better look, holding up his right arm to view. From there, he could see amongst the playground chaos was a scratch on his arm. The skin had been torn away to reveal the reddish pink muscle underneath. Hidan held his breath and stared at the scrape, sudden look of fascination coming over his features. Time seemed to stop when he saw it, the glistening blood welling up from the wound to produce a bead. As the bead enlarged it finally gave out into a pool and slithered down his arm.

It felt strange, blood was warm. Hidan had never had such a large wound before and he never thought it hurt so much. No, it didn't really feel like it hurt, more like a severe soreness, like a burn. Once the stream of red crimson dipped underneath his arm, it created a small mound and a bead separated, glistening again in the sunlight and landed on a blade of grass.

After that, time sped up again. Hidan blinked back to reality and turned back to the school yard, ears filling with the silence of the area. A gust of wind blew over the yard, giving the boy a bit of a shiver.

"Oi! Class is starting!" An instructor waved from the entrance, one hand hooked to the door to keep it open.

Hidan blinked again, but found no words. The instructor cocked his head at the boy and let go of the door, jogging over to the boy. Once he approached, he knelt down by the child's side and caught sight of the wound.

"Oh, you're hurt," He said. The instructor took hold of the boy's arm and inspected the wound further. Seeing no signs of it being serious, the man slowly came to a stand, tugging gently on the boy's arm. "Come inside, we'll get that patched up."

Hidan nodded and slowly stood with the man's help. He lifted his gaze and met his eyes, suddenly seeing fear and shock flash in the man's expression for a brief moment. The instructor's lips parted and Hidan sensed a feeling of dread. He'd never seen that face on an adult before, not that look of complete terror. The man seemed to freeze, staring blankly into his face.

"Um, mister?" Hidan blurted out. The man blinked and quickly let go of Hidan's arm as if he'd touched something foul.

"S-sorry," The instructor took a deep breath and exhaled, gaining back his confidence. Despite that, Hidan still sensed some fear in the man, hidden deep. "After we're done, join your class. You're starting your Warring Era unit right?"

The man turned around quickly and lead the boy to the door. Hidan furrowed his eyebrows as he tailed him. What was that look? Why did he look so scared? Hidan moved up the steps and stopped at the entrance to look at his scraped arm. The blood had become a bit cold, so he could feel it this time. The soreness was still there, but lessened. Hidan noted the stickiness of the substance, like a super dense paint that still had the texture of water._ Is it because of the blood? Is this scary?_

_ It hurts but...it feels..._

_ Real_

* * *

"You're strong for not crying," The nurse pat the gauze around the boy's arm. She made a warm smile and let him take a look at it, watching as the child twisted and turned his elbow to see it from every angle possible. "Now try to be more careful."

Hidan stared at the bandage, a feeling of disappointment welling up. He didn't know what it was, but the wound fascinated him somehow. Something beneath the skin, something so sensitive that the slightest bit of harm would send lightening throughout the rest to the body. Pain felt so real, overpowering.

Where did such power come from? Surely he was too weak to create it. He was only a kid after all. Human.

"Go on, time to go!" The nurse gestured for him to stand. "You don't want to be late now do you?"

"R-right," Hidan nodded and hopped off the high stool. After he made his thank you's, the boy exited the nurse's room and found himself in the empty hallway of the academy. Hidan frowned and took one last look at the gauze before heading quietly down the corridor.

He ignored the other classrooms. Right now in his school, things would be changing quite soon. He knew from his parents that a change of curriculum and focus would be implemented into the academies. No longer would they teach the strategies needed to be a shinobi, but more along the business and the skills one would require to go into trade. This institution would go from a ninja academy to a regular school in a couple of years.

Hidan hated that idea.

What of his future then? Hidan came to this school after he aspired to be a ninja and fight like the many people of his village. He wanted to fight, to battle, to demonstrate his strength and yet on with the path he's been walking along now, he could only see himself becoming a weak food cart driver on the streets. The thought depressed him.

He stepped into the classroom and the lesson briefly paused. The teacher at the front turned to the boy and nodded at him, then continued with the chapter. The children who looked at him discarded their gazes and moved back to their textbooks. Hidan cast his sight over the classroom and moved down the stairs to slip into his seat in the 3rd row.

Hidan found his textbook underneath the table and placed it open on the desk. He glanced briefly at the boy next to him and spied out the page number: 403. The first page to the chapter depicted an old mural probably drawn in some ancient time. Hidan leaned his head against his palm and drifted off. History didn't interest him, it was usually littered with politics anyway. Usually about a some guy who did something wrong because he was reckless and sparked a fiasco that lasted for ages.

"-Several groups originated in that time. One of the surviving groups were known as a cult called Jashinism."

"_Hey_."

Hidan hummed and turned to the boy beside him lazily. The boy's expression was light, fascination showing on his face. He bowed his head low as if to hide their chat from the instructor and whispered, "Jashinists, I've heard of them. My parent's say a group lives near here, but barely anyone knows."

"So?" The child whispered back.

"So!" The other exclaimed, earning the attention of the teacher. Immediately, the lesson paused and the two received a light scolding before attentions turned back to the board. Hidan sat in his seat, blinking a couple of times to clear his vision.

Marked on the white board were several names of significant groups within the era. Mainly clans and some factions were listed, many that Hidan didn't remember too much about reading, but one name caught his eye.

_Jashinists_

Who were they? The boy focused solely on the word, all other sounds of the squeaking pen, students coughing or the teacher's instructions were filtered out. Hidan mouthed the word a few times, whispering the syllables to himself as to get an idea of its phonetics. That word, he heard it before. A week ago, his mother uttered half of it, and by now, the child had no doubt that was the name she was dared to speak. There was something heavy about it, something that stuck out to him despite being little more than a few squiggles among more on the surface.

"So..." Hidan heard the boy next to him attempt to whisper again. Giving in, he finally faced the other, earning a look of surprise on his face. His fellow student furrowed a brow as he gazed into his eyes, muttering something under his breath that Hidan couldn't quite hear.

"-Anyway, do you know about the council's plans for the village? Did you hear about them?" The boy was glancing at the teacher warily, speaking as if the subject was taboo.

He was reminded briefly of his mother. The woman apparently raised him throughout his earlier days as a toddler, but according to her, she was offered a position when he turned four. He couldn't remember a time when his mother wasn't up front and strict. Hidan's father had told him once that the lady was previously a nice person, always concerned about others and looked to see the best in the younger generation. After she accepted the offer however, she'd become more secretive towards Hidan and conversation between his parents were often held off until the middle of night, making their dinners quiet.

Hidan nodded.

"Yeah well, they say that the Jashinist group nearby heard about it too, and they're not happy. Mom says that I'm moving soon too, they don't want to get mixed up with them."

_So I'm not the only one who?_ Hidan turned to face the front of the class again, a new fire in his eyes. No, he wasn't alone in his trail of thought. Whoever these Jashinists were, they sounded interesting, and as far as he knew, they were generally on the same side. This didn't matter anymore, not school, not his parents, not his mother. No body wanted to fight, not even the ninja clans. No one here had any pride, not a single one of them. Not his teacher, not these students, not his father, not anyone.

He explored the textbook briefly, eyes settling on a single picture on page 446. A man stood staring into the camera, a confident and steely expression boring into the camera. He wore little clothing, almost naked, easily revealing the war scars on his skin. Hidan noted the strange purple colour in the man's eyes, then looked down to focus on the pendant around his neck.

* * *

_(Naruto Shippuden OST 2 Track 6 – Hidan)_

"Hey, did you tell your teacher you'll be moving in two months?" Hidan paused right before a turned the corner of a wooden fence. Brown book-bag slung over his shoulder, he pressed himself against the surface to minimize his presence and movement. Just past the turn stood a recognizable shinobi and a young girl. The elder seemed to be in her late teens, much too young to be this kid's mother. More than likely, she was probably her sister or neighbour.

The older one made a grin and patted the little girl's head as the child nodded. The little girl stopped bouncing and stood on the spot for a few seconds, hands tightening around the edges of her textbook. She whimpered, "But I don't wanna leave my friends..."

_Then don't leave_! Hidan resisted commenting but the words still caught in his throat, desperate to escape. He gulped down the sentence and listened further, eyeing the two behind the fence. The boy didn't recognize their clan, the child he was years ago wouldn't have cared.

Knelt down, the older woman pat her shoulder and whispered in a gentle tone that Hidan couldn't decipher. After a few seconds of racking his brain to figure out what she'd said, the boy finally cursed silently and stomped off back from where he came.

Cowards, pussies, everyone.

Hidan trudged down the village path, an object bounced in his pocket. His parents didn't really care where he went after school, just as long as he was back by curfew, usually before the sun had completely set. Normally, he'd spend this time training or hanging with his friends, but what was the point anymore? His friends all had plans to move away within the next year or two, and training would do nothing if he wouldn't graduate to become a genin. No longer was being shipped into the life of a shinobi so easy, and Hidan was furious.

The Jashinists! Surely they had something to talk about. Hidan had tried to speak, but many of the others has shied away from the topic. All they cared about where the next days homework or the restaurant opening some blocks away. Trivial! Trivial matters! Did they not care about their own futures! The clans were all liars, they only came to the village to gain money, not to serve in the village's name. Hidan had honestly looked up to some of them, aspired to be greater than their biggest achievements on the battle field.

An hour passed and the sun slowly slipped passed the horizon. Hidan stood underneath a tree and gazed over at the darkening sky. To many, the twilight hours were ones to be observed with awe and respect, but Hidan saw nothing of it. There was no art to this scene, nothing but the black and burnt shadows of the forest, a giant black silhouette before the a fire in the distance. If he hadn't known that was the sun, perhaps this would have been a hellish scene.

Hidan sighed and leaned against a tree. How many hours had he been trudging frustratedly? Two? Five? Ten? His parents were probably scrambling right now, either that or they had just begun to notice his disappearance.

He didn't care.

Whatever feeling gripped at his chest, it wasn't one of guilt. Hidan's normally quaint and docile expression crumpled up into one of malice, face blackening in pure rage. Everything he'd been told to live for, the pride of the village, how much loyalty meant. He was taught as a student the rules of the shinobi, the ones that each and every serving ninja alive in the lands stood by, loyalty and power. There was a strange sort of spirit in every village, Konoha had the Will of Fire while Iwagakure lived by the Will of Stone. Hidan had heard of the others, the Will of Lightening much like the Will of Wind. It felt as if he'd been stabbed in the back.

The very notion that things always changed didn't trouble Hidan at all, he considered himself quite flexible really. However, things at the moment were turning for the worst. He felt lost, and it was too late to face his parents. What for? They'd probably yell at him for coming home late and remain silent for the rest of the night. Hidan didn't want to hear their mocking tones by the time the moon rose high either.

Hidan sighed and let his legs give out, sliding down the bark of the tree to rest only for him to feel a sharp pain sear into his side. His muscles quickly went taught and supported himself off the ground before any further injury could be dealt. Hidan winced and quickly felt his hip, eventually slipping his hand into his pocket to fish out a certain item.

The pain was gone now, but Hidan had no time to feel relieved for soon enough, his mind got lost in a jumble. In his hand, he held the pendant his father brought home. Now he knew the significance of it, the crimson circle with what probably had been an inverted triangle in its better days. According to much of what he'd learned in class, a triangle was one of the strongest shapes, often used in architecture, particularly roofs. Domes could be like circles, support from all sides. With these two shapes put together, Hidan could only think of this symbol of being the ultimate structure, a mix of both. Something that wouldn't fall no matter where the blow was dealt, a symbol of-what was it? The word for something that couldn't die?

These Jashinist people sure seemed interesting.

With new found determination, Hidan slipped the item back into his pocket and shot up. He regarded his surroundings for a moment before darting off into the woods, in the general direction he was sure the kids told him where they heard the cultist group was last seen.

Through the brush, Hidan ignored the branches raking at his sides and the occasional bug that flew into his face. He barely thought as he just ran, blind against the increasing darkness. Finally, he saw some moonlight peering past the trees. Hidan came upon the shorter of the bushes and finally was able to see past them, spying out a strange clearing up ahead. The boy paused in the brush and stared, then finally pumped himself up for one last push.

He stumbled out of the trees as one would expect of an inexperienced 9 year old, tumbling out onto the clearing and landing flat on his front. Hidan winced slightly and pulled up his arm to press his hand to the grassy floor. Hidan slowly rose and sat back on his bottom, one hand supporting himself while the other rubbed the side of his temple in attempt to soothe the strange heaviness in his head.

Hidan groaned and tried to stand.

_SHING_

A flash of glaring white on the blade before it struck the ground. Hidan was lucky to jump out of the way as quickly as he did, but just barely as he fell back against the shadow of a tree. Up to five figures appeared on the field. The older man at front yanked the blood red triple-bladed scythe out of the floor and sharply brought it to his side, recoiled and ready for another swing.

"Well! Look at what we have here!" One of the men drawled out, his voice almost sounding drunken in tone. "What an adorable little child, are you lost?"

Hidan watched with wide eyes as the group howled in laughter, their screeches almost ear-tearing. The way the blade gleamed in the moonlight as it raised sent a chill down the boy's spine and a strange boiling feeling in his stomach. He felt himself freeze on the spot in fear, immediately responding by shaking his head violently to rid of the blur in his eyes. Hidan refocused and tried to think rationally, looking over his new assailants.

Each man stood a few feet apart. The were almost naked of clothing, the night wind barely affecting them. What struck Hidan most were the deep scars and gashes that decorated their skin, many were puncture holes on the chest or long deep scars across the arms and legs, sometimes the face. Bouncing slightly against their hyena howls, Hidan noted the familiar pendant adorning their necks, their glossy surfaces practically glowing. Being the child he was, their glow almost seemed ethereal. This was it, these were the people he'd been looking for.

"Too damn bad kid! You strayed off the path!" One of the Jashinists hollered out, their grinning faces seemed sadistic.

Upon sight, Hidan felt a heaviness upon him. It wasn't something of will, but an image, almost as if his body had picked up a signal. He could feel it, the blood lust radiating off of them. There was no such thing as fear within their eyes, their posture, the way they gripped their weapons with such confidence they could playing a game. Hidan staggered forward, heat hammering against his chest as he envisioned knives and blades coming down and shredding his flesh apart, tearing him into mice meat, snapping his bones wherever possible. The pain, there was so much pain...

Hidan fell to his knees, breathing heavily, body drenched in a cold sweat. When he looked up again, he almost flinched to meet their eyes. He felt small, oh so small, like a rabbit cornered by a pack of wolves.

"Say goodbye..." The pack leader lifted the scythe and held it up to his mouth, licking the blade sadistically, almost appearing snakelike.

_Dammit! Quit being scared! Fear is for cowards!_ Hidan pushed away all rational thought and bit his tongue, crying out in pain. Immediately, his mind cleared to the reality, no longer affected by the killer intent as he staggered upwards. Hidan felt the blood on his taste buds but swallowed it anyway, he couldn't be slobbering now.

"Hey!" Hidan barked, wiping the grins off of the groups faces. All men came to attention, icy glares obviously not fond of their prey struggling.

Hidan fought his way past the glares and clumsily stood, body quaking harder every time he tried to suppress the shivers. "You're Jashinist's aren't you!? I'm not lost! I want to talk to you!"

The leader hummed, unimpressed by the boy. Hidan faltered under his gaze but forced himself to stand strong. He slid his foot forward, testing them slowly as the boy cautiously crept out of from under the tree into the clearing, stepping away from anywhere he could hide. Out in this grassy area, he was open on all sides. Even if he tried to run, Hidan had no hope in escaping.

On his final step, Hidan stomped, earning a pissed look from the leader. The man quickly rose his blade but halted when the boy reached into his pocket and pulled out an item familiar to their eyes. Hidan held out the pendant to view, fingers safely positioned away from the sharpened edge. Hidan displayed it like a shield, arm shaking slightly. "This used to be one of yours right?"

The leader squinted while the others in contrast fidgeted, some of them twirling their weapons in hand while others looked at the boy with a lurking eye.

"I want to know your opinion," Hidan spoke in a lower tone and gulped. "I h-heard...I heard you guys knew about the plans that Yugakure are making."

"Bullshit! Let's just skin'em already!" One man snapped and charged forward, brandishing his knife. Just before he could start however, the triple-bladed scythe swung back and pierced his chest, a total of two blades digging deeper into his ribcage with a sickening crack and the third just sliced into his side. The man went limp immediately, wounds oozing with a red liquid.

Hidan stared at the sight, staring at it with a strange fascination as the man hacked the blade upwards and discarded his lackey to the floor. The boy blinked and turned back to him, thinking to himself how strange it was that he wasn't disturbed by the spectacle.

"Shut up, bow down and listen to the word of the prophet!" The leader shouted, making many of the men jump.

_Prophet? Is he a prophet or something?_ Hidan watched as he man ordered the others to kneel, their heads bowed to the earth, necks exposed in submission. The leader swung his scythe like a twig to get them to bow before finally turning himself, then dropping to the floor in the same position, scythe propped up with the blade facing away from the boy.

"Oh prophet! We apologize deeply for our incompetence! We did not recognize you in the dark!" The man's voice went from commanding and dominant to weak and unworthy at the drop of the coin.

_E-eh!? I'm the prophet!?_ Hidan stepped back slightly, fear creeping upon his vision once again. Not the kind of fear he felt before however, instead of dreading death, confusion crossed his mind. His arm dropped and he raised a brow, scratching the back of his head in a slump. "W-what? Prophet?"

"So Lord-Jashin has wiped your memory to protect you? I see..." The man mumbled in a breathy tone. He stood up and faced the boy again in a less threatening manner. Like this, Hidan could see him better, he was much older than he first perceived him to be, probably in his late thirties. "Then I shall explain."

* * *

**A/N: I'm on a roll this time, so expect a chapter either tomorrow or on Wednesday. Nice to meet ya! Review if you'd like! **


	51. Punishment

**Punishment**

The house was more quiet nowadays, or well, quieter than it would have been. They too have planned to move, evident from the cardboard boxes stacked along the walls, some of them holding regular household items, another box specifically for precious memories of their youngest son.

He gazed over emptily over the small room. The purple walls seemed dull and faded, while the room window which used to always stay open was now dusty and locked. A few weeks ago, his son's 14thbirthday would have passed. He knew for a fact that the kid loved eating a big dinner on these days, and often went out to celebrate with his friends. The child never came by today, not a glimpse, not even their neighbours, old or new were able to give even a hint at where the boy could be. His son's friends had almost all moved away, replaced by civilians children who would rather go into the arts, woodwork, engineering, building, whatever it took to live an average life. Him and wife's lives would never go the same way however. They didn't possess the skills to do much else than the career's they had, but his wife had opted out of the council a while ago, while he only continued as a mildly paid guard until they had enough to move elsewhere. They'd normally have enough, but they'd spent too much money in efforts to find the child.

The village was changing, and as it seemed, their little boy had disappeared right before the shinobi status of their home ended. The man sighed and stepped out of the stuffy room, it hadn't seen fresh air for more than a couple of years. Closing the door shut, he walked into the main room and met with his wife at the table. The two met glances but broke it off almost immediately. The two stopped talking in the middle of night. Their son had hated that, the secret conversations. Somehow, the two held on to some broken string of hope that if perhaps they'd stopped, the child would show up.

Regardless, the day had come and gone. They'd accepted he probably wasn't coming back. They have to move on, dwelling on such things of the past would only add fuel to their suffering. The neighbours had been of no help in comforting them, too busy with their own lives and families to make arrangements for either a new education or to migrate elsewhere.

"Is it tomorrow?" He heard the quiet tone of his wife ask from the dinner table. Normally the sight of her alone there wouldn't have troubled him, but something strangely missing, something he'd never noticed until the realization came.

The man shook his head. "No, we'll be staying for another week. Just a few more days, it's only a few more days."

* * *

Moonlight fell on the rocky surface of the plateau. Several men and some women knelt down, necks exposed in submission. None of them even considered raising their heads, unworthy to meet the blood eyes their lord had gifted to the young prophet. Pink or red, either one symbolized that the whoever had them had been selected, selected to lead their religion as the many before them did. Their saviour in times when such idleness had swept the lands, no major wars, no broken promises, the Shinobi lands had become too quiet, too stale for their liking.

Hidan stood amongst them, more well-built throughout his years of training to beat out rivals who would dare take his place at the top. His arms were no longer lanky, but strong, chest well-built to withstand hard blows he would inevitably receive as he climbed up the ladder of the kinds of sacrifices he could make. He knew now, his eyes were a blessing. They weren't 'weird', they were a gift. Jashin had chosen him, and Hidan now understood after spending time with the people he had been destined to lead.

A man sidled up next to him. Hidan turned slightly and eyed him, the former leader of his group of fifty or so followers. The man had not backed down from his place until two years passed, when Hidan finally surpassed him in skill. The person had become his servant in a way, treating him like a god. They all did, fetching him food, getting his weapons, hailing him on a pedestal. Hidan had been newly nurtured upon the values of Jashinism.

Hidan looked upon his followers, then spoke, "I understand now."

"May I ask what dear prophet?" The man nodded, his gaze moving over the lower ranking Jashinists, spying for any sort of error.

"Back then, before I met you, I was confused. My mother was a councillor, so I knew about the plans for Yugakure. The heathens, they don't fight like true followers, they just wanted money. I understand now, I noticed what the sinners did not only because I had the eyes."

"It's the vice, money." The man shook his head. "They must be punished, the word of Jashin has confirmed the blasphemy. They cannot be allowed to live."

"Then fetch me a weapon, I'll kill on his word." Hidan commanded, "It's about time those fuckers realized the consequences."

Hidan felt the cold icy kiss of a blade touch his fingertips, causing him to look down. When he snapped to attention, he gripped at the handle and struck the blade to the floor, piercing the stone as if it were but butter. Hidan testing the weight on his fingers, yanking it out of the stone and making a few practice swings over and around his body. The triple-bladed scythe seemed heavy on one side but there was a bit of counter-balance built into the other end that Hidan could feel just by holding it. The grip didn't betray him either, stingray skin and some other leather around the hilt adding for a truly iron grasp.

Hidan held the blade in front of him, watching the fast retreating sunlight bounce off the blade and glare. It seemed polished. "Are you giving it to me? It looks new."

"That is a weapon that has been specially crafted for our cause, it looks virgin, but it's sent over a hundred to Jashin."

The now teenager raised a brow and swung the blade horizontally, testing it again. It was heavy, but not the heaviest weapon he'd ever tried to wield.

"Is that so?" Hidan hummed and smirked. "Well then..."

"...YOU'RE ALL FOOLS!"

All heads snapped upwards to meet the glowing pink gaze of their saviour, their leader. Hidan stood and slammed the scythe into the ground next to him, the sound of steel against rock screeching in everyone's ears. Hidan took a deep breath, then spoke in the way he felt had been meant for him. "How can you expect me to punish when I don't have the means! I came down to lead youand what do I get in return? Have none of you idiots thought!? I can't do this without the ****. If I am to carry out the holy deed of Lord-Jashin, I must become immortal you fucking idiots!"

In acceptance of his words, the crowd held their hands up into the sky and began to preach, a low hum in the quiet of the forest, all voices melding together to make one big sound. Hidan barely heard their individual voices, but it didn't matter to him. He felt powerful, and he felt as if he was in control. Back at his old village, people were cowards. They didn't know the meaning of being loyal, and they'd gone wherever the scent of money misguided them. It wasn't to him that money was simply a reality. All realities deserved to be questioned. One could go ahead and live their entire lives without thinking that perhaps things were wrong, that something was out of place. Their usual excuse? It's the way of the world. People betray, become traitors, run away. Hidan found a new home in the lives of Jashinists, a place where no one left, all were loyal, all would give their lives in the name of their saviour. Hidan had fallen into place with them, and he planned on bringing down many more.

* * *

The night after the ritual that granted him immortality was filled with slaughter, blood, death. Hidan had stood amongst his now lifeless followers and was determined to stand amongst more, more of the dead. He didn't consider himself a zealot. It was only logical, that people realized how lowly their lives truly were.

Upon his massacre of the village, the torn bodies, the cries for help, the screams of terror and pleads to live, Hidan realized something else. People were selfish, oblivious, ungrateful. Did they not recognize the gift of life they had been granted? The gift they were given that allowed them to play, to bond, to laugh, to cry, all of these things are luxuries. Why did people complain? Why was it only when they were faced the cold reality that their lives were meaningless in the face of a killer, that their experiences were simply a small fraction of time in the great way of things did they beg death to leave them, to allow them to live? Even if it were for just a couple of more days? A couple of more minutes? Life was fleeting after all, a fly would live for a day to a week, mate, then die. Despite its short life span, it's actions of mating would give life to a swarm of flies, first maggots that fed upon the dead and then readied for its ultimate goal, to reproduce. In birth there was blood, and in death there was blood. People only truly appreciate what it means to live by realizing how close they are the end. All people have one true destiny, and that is that their lives will finish. Hidan accepted that, and even after he was granted immortality by his followers, he only wished someone would kill him, make him feel as if he had lived at all. Killing lead to enlightenment. When faced with the idea that one would die, it's not usually a question of whether or not one would contemplate the meaning of it all.

Hidan had only taken this message to heart, the very core of his faith. Jashin proved to the people that through violence, one would attain true enlightenment. Through bloodshed, people learned how to live, how to die, how to realize that their futures were out of their control.

Even now as he gazed upon the horrid looks on his parent's eyes, frozen in time with their lifeless bodies slung around the room like rag dolls. No longer was their main room empty, now trashed with a mess of household items. Hidan could only guess his parents planned to move. The very idea angered him; his very own parents. Well, he didn't consider him his parents anymore. Now they were simply sinners who had received the punishment they deserved.

Who was the puppeteer? Who knows?

Who cares?

* * *

_20 or 30 more...I can't remember and I only got a few weeks left..._

"Hmm, right now though, it's gonna be hard to be sacrifice anything..." Hidan whined and lolled his head, wincing slightly as the bright light of the morning hit his eyes. He quickly brought an arm up to shield himself and stared at the clearing, noting a single rock in the middle of the grassy area. Perched on it was the masked guy, Kakuzu was it? He didn't really remember, but he had taken cues from the others at who he was. Someone important no doubt, considering the types of wary gazes the little boy and that old man gave him. The other raven-haired child was far better had hiding his fear,

"What are you talking about?" Hidan blinked and gazed upwards lazily, meeting gazes with the other child he met. Despite his looks, Hidan knew ever since he saw him that the kid was a male, but he couldn't help but find it amusing to tease him.

The blond tossed a chunk of clay in boredom between his hands. The 11 year old looked at him oddly, not a look that Hidan was too unused to however. He waved his hand dismissively. "Nothing that concerns you kid."

"Kid? I'm no kid, we're the same age!" Deidara retorted, grumbling slightly. Something about this situation felt familiar, and didn't like it. The Jashinist snickered and burst out laughing, earning a glare from the other. The young bomber scoffed and watched the older child roll around on the grassy floor, doubled over in laughter. "You're weird."

Hidan seemed ignore his comment until his amusement began to die off, slowly coming to a stop, tears creeping at the edges of his eyes. The boy grinned in amusement and wiped the tear from his eye, noting the small stature of the cocky little heathen standing over him. Hidan laid on his back and heaved, smile melting into an annoyed frown. The zealot pointed at the boy accusingly. "Now you watch it! Don't speak to your superiors like that."

"Superior!?" Deidara exclaimed and staggered back. "Now hold on! You're only like-what? 3 years ahead of me? What makes you my superior?!"

"3 years is hell lot of time for your puny brain!" Hidan shot up and protested.

_As usual._ Sasori watched from afar. First some tension, then a comment, then an argument. That's how it usually started between Deidara and Itachi, the only difference this time was that the argument wasn't completely one-sided. Hiruko rested itself on the floor, taking a toll off of Sasori's chakra threads to rest a little. They'd been travelling non-stop for a day now, and even if him and the brat were used to going at it for hours without rest, the others probably weren't as sturdy.

Sasori wasn't surprised to see Hidan's behaviour. He didn't know anything of the boy the teenager was before he was influence, but he could tell just by looking at him that the Jashinists had persisted despite all of the changes of time. It was an interesting thing, if he weren't so annoyed by his behaviour, he would have called its persistence amusing; not in the sense that it seemed fun to squander but that it was an admirable quality. Sasori could only imagine that the cult of Jashin has faced a similar situation to clan of ninja Sasori had researched for some time on his travels before he started his work in the Akatsuki.

The Kaguya clan, a similar case to make any sense of the history of Jashinism, though the two rarely went head to head due to the distance between them geographically, they both served similar roles in their time. Both groups were known for their savagery and archaic values. The thrill of slaughter, that's what drove them, and Sasori knew that it wasn't only the Kaguya clan that held that idea but Jashinists as well. These values came from the warring states era and probably earlier, when war and chaos was all there was. However, because of those values, the clan fell. Sasori had never been particularly interested in the subject, but he knew vaguely that the clan went extinct only because the world they stemmed from was an old one, a place that no longer existed. The modern world was more sophisticated, civilized, where war was no longer just mindless killing. The Kaguya clan fell because they were too obsessed with violence, an encounter with the organized forces of Kirigakure cornered them, and a mass execution was held.

Jashinism would be one of the only few relics of a time before hidden village's were constructed. Sasori was quite interested in having one of those relics right here in his vicinity, but he doubted leader would allow him to take unrestricted research with Hidan as his subject. The puppeteer smirked in disappointment, hand twitching in excitement. It was too bad he couldn't take one for himself before they would all be swept away by the course of time, not even their immortality could keep them alive. Sasori thought it typical, they never tried to advance, to remodel, to fix themselves and adapt. Flesh and bone like that would always be susceptible to damage, wear and tear, and eventually to rot away. Eventually, Jashinism would meet a similar end to the Kaguya, Sasori didn't need to second guess himself. Recklessness would be Hidan's end, that was the destiny of all those who dare go down that path. As long as Hidan was still of flesh and bone, Sasori saw him nothing more than a particularly persistent little kid.

"Says the guy with no brain to begin with!" Deidara tossed his clay into his other hand and pointed at the other boy, stomping furiously.

"Oh I have a brain! I could fucking show it you if you wanted! But what happens if I try to find your brain!? You'd be dead once I get to it!" Hidan protested loudly.

Itachi rummaged through his small bag while observing the spectacle curiously. As it seems, the blond had found someone else to bother. Well, good thing. If this meant anything good, it probably meant he could sleep at night without preparing for screaming in his ear. He could be comfortable with it not happening daily whenever Deidara was around at least.

The raven stood up and slung the bag over his shoulder. He regarded Kakuzu for a few moments, annoyance plain on the miser's face. Once his pondering was done, Itachi sauntered over to the puppeteer and stopped just few paces away. He contemplated his words for a moment, knowing that he'd better not waste the redhead's time. "Sasori."

Hiruko sat idly, suddenly his head swung downwards and twisted towards Itachi. "What?"

"I know you and Deidara want to head back, but I think I should go find Kisame. It'll be long trip so I want go as soon as possible." Itachi tried to word it so he sounded reasonable.

"That's fine, but I already got word, your partner will be meeting up at the tower. You'll just be going on the same path as us anyway." Sasori paused. "Unless you have business elsewhere?"

Itachi blinked and quickly waved a hand dismissively. "No, no, that's fine. I was just a little worried, that's all."

"Don't think I didn't hear that."

The boy whirled around to come face to face with a rather pissed looking Deidara. He blinked again and backed away slightly, unsure of what to make of the situation.

"Leaving? You think you're too good to travel with me and danna? Huh!?"

* * *

**A/N: This chapter is little short, it's really just to wrap up Hidan's little past thingy. I'm on spring break now so I'm gonna try and get the next arc to be a little more eventful than this boring crap! :D**

**Thanks for reading! Nice to meet ya! Review if you'd like!**


	52. The Strangeness of Those Two

**The Strangeness of Those Two**

The Akatsuki are strange people.

Rogues of the same uniform, they were supposedly what one would call a defectors, someone of the outside and yet they together formed this sort of alliance, this organization. Of course, this didn't plague Hidan's mind at first, all he thought was that it would definitely be difficult to escape this sort of situation. Who these people were, what they wanted, and whether or not the boy would be set free later was one of the first things that he considered once he was told to suck it up and deal with the masked man.

Over the past week, things had gotten pretty bad between them. Not only was Kakuzu a man who couldn't resist plopping his head off every few minutes, but he was a man of many vices, money being one of them. It didn't help that Kakuzu seemed to act as if he knew more than Hidan ever would, and the worst part was, the zealot had a hunch he really did. With the age gap they had to work with, and this was no ordinary age gap between parent and son, no, this was between a toddler and an unwilling 55 year old, the two fought like no tomorrow. Learning that the miser was immortal too didn't make anything easier.

He did however find some solace within the younger ones around. Though Sasori already didn't seem to like him, the old man was tolerant and didn't take every moment he could to criticize him. He'd only met Kisame briefly, but he could already tell that the guy was neutral and didn't plan to get any closer. Hidan was fine with that of course. Then there were the little ones, little kids like Deidara or Itachi who didn't seem to know their place. It must have been because they didn't know; actually that would be everyone, no one knew of his importance. Used to two plus years of being hailed as a prophet and waited hand and foot, Hidan found it unnerving that the two younger kids often resisted against him and no one older cared for any of his orders unless they were put respectfully.

Itachi was aloof, but Deidara at least seemed to show an interest. The two didn't meet that often, but over the course of the week, Hidan had managed to cling to the blond and forge some sort of an acquaintanceship with him. It didn't stop the little boy from throwing bombs left and right but Hidan remained persistent anyway.

_(Naruto Shippuden Movie 3 OST - Journey)_

Hidan recoiled at the sight of green in his bowl. Today he'd agreed to eat lunch with Deidara because he couldn't stand another day begging to get his limbs or other parts sewed back onto his body. The Uchiha was out of the country with the blue guy and the only ones remaining for the last couple of days here were the strange old puppeteer and little Deidara. Hidan may have been immortal, but he still needed to eat. Immortality only went so far, and even now, he had a time limit as to how long he could keep it.

The blond picked up his chopsticks and lifted his rice bowl. He tried his best to remove his gaze from their guest, knowing that he'd better off not get involved in the first place. His gaze was focused against the space in front of him and nothing more, but he couldn't help but notice as the minutes pass that the food placed in front of the teenager hadn't even been touched.

Hidan frowned deeply and stuck a finger inside his ear. Deidara blinked a couple of times, then turned to face the other. "Aren't you gonna eat?"

"Nope."

A tiny sound of surprise left the little boy's lips. He wasn't gonna eat it? What was wrong? Was he not hungry? That couldn't be it, the jashinist had been whining earlier about starving. Was the food too hot? Well, he couldn't say for sure about the others preference but Deidara thought the rice was at least a little warmer than room temperature, edible without burning any taste buds.

"What is it? Something wrong with it?" The blond put down his bowl and leaned his chopsticks on them, looking at the zealot oddly.

"Yeah," Hidan stuck his nose up at the meal and pointed at a boiled green leaf in his bowl."What's that?"

Deidara stared at it for a few seconds and managed a good guess. "Um, bok choy leaves?"

"Ew, I don't like that stuff."

"Then eat the other stuff." The eleven year old returned to his own meal. He heard a disgusted grunt from the Jashinist, then the sound of the untouched bowl sliding further away from them on the table, pushed away and rejected.

"What are you doing?" Deidara furrowed an eyebrow.

"I don't want it."

"What's wrong with the leaves?"

"It's a vegetable. I hate vegetables." Hidan grumbled.

"Doesn't matter, just eat it!" Deidara snapped, appalled at the idea that a boy fourteen years of age still behaved like a picky five year old. Especially here of all places, weren't rogue ninja supposed to be hardy? "Danna went made this for us so you should eat it! Whether you like it or not!"

Hidan slammed his hand on the kotatsu and protested, "Bah, tell the old man to make me something else! Something without disgusting vegetables in it! I'm no goat!"

"Quit acting like a baby! Suck it up and take it like a man!"

"You're closer to a baby than I am! I'm your superior! So go tell your 'old man' to make something that I can actually eat!"

"He is not old!-"

_SLAM_

"What is going on!?"

Deidara winced and froze at the familiar tone of his master. Hiruko stood by the door of the room, tail pressed firmly against the door to the stone wall. His loud entrance had also seemed to silence Hidan as well, who simply sat there with his eyes wide.

Silence fell over the small room as Sasori retracted his tail from the door and approached them, sliding slowly across the floor, dead orbs staring both of them down. The blond gulped and shifted away from their guest, attempting to get out of the picture and leave whatever spite the puppeteer had to the immortal kid. He'd known the redhead for a good three years now, he knew what that tone meant. Sasori eyed the two, then moved his gaze down to the table where he noticed plainly that the bowl on the right was strangely close to the edge of the table.

"Eh? What's that look?" Hidan grumbled, though his words seemed a bit forced.

_Shut up you idiot!_ Deidara felt like grabbing the boy and shouting in his face. His eyes snapped to the little zealot and then back to his master, noticing the slight pause in Hiruko's movement. Sasori had heard that as well as the undertones.

"I heard your argument through the wall. Is there something going on?" Sasori stared squarely.

Deidara huffed and crossed his arms, whipping his head away from the other boy. He stuck out his lower lip and murmured, "I don't know, ask him."

Immediately, the Yugakure teen scoffed, "I don't eat vegetables, make me something else."

Hiruko's gaze narrowed. "There_ isn't_ anything else. Just eat, and eat _quietly_."

"Tch, told you." The blond mumbled triumphantly and returned to his meal. He earned a glare from the other while Sasori turned to head back to his workshop. Obviously, this didn't sit well the young Jashinist, temple throbbing in annoyance at their disregard.

"Fine then, I'm not eating."

Hiruko paused. This time, the eleven year old didn't bother with trying to figure out what was going through his mentor's head. He knew now that lunch today would not be as quiet as he expected to it be. This had never been much of a problem for himself, Deidara had never really been a picky eater and and he and his master had rarely argued about what food came to the table. One thing he did know however was that Sasori was very adamant when it came to meal time, and that he always expected every grain of rice to be consumed and every drop of liquid to be gone. With a puppet for a body, it confused him at first as to why the redhead was so strict with a sustenance he didn't need, but then he remembered that his master came from the sand village, a place where periods of famine were common.

"Yes you are."

Hidan opened a single eye.

"You are going to eat and finish everything I have given you." Sasori's voice seemed to hiss dangerous low. "Food _doesn't_ come easy, so you'd better stuff yourself or else_ I'll force to do it_."

"Nuh-uh, you can't force me to do anything!" Hidan scoffed, grin spreading across his face. "Just throw it away! I'll find something else to eat."

"Do you have any idea what a waste that is?" Hiruko turned around to face the imprudent teenager. A familiar clicking noise emitted from the shell, long tail readying to smack this kid upright if he needed to. Sasori felt no emotional connection whatsoever with the little zealot, so he didn't care whatever injuries it required to get the kid to eat. "You know, right now, you could be starving to death and you would gladly eat what I've offered you. Have you thought of that?"

Hidan folded his arms behind his head in a carefree manner. He seemed to ponder this idea for a moment before huffing, "Who cares?"

Deidara quickly lifted his bowl off the table before Sasori could whip out his tail and send the table flying across the room. The bowl hit the wall, breaking into pieces that slid over the stone floor. Through the loud crash, the puppeteer's ragged growls clearly replaced what dangerous aura he could emit. Hidan sat there with both hands in the air, face paling slightly as the bok choy leaf fell on his nose limply.

Calmly, the boy continued to eat. The idiot got what was coming for him. Sasori had made more than enough warnings.

"Are you happy now? Now no one can eat it!" The puppeteer snarled and snaked the tail into the air, just barely reaching the ceiling. "

"Oi! You're not just an old man! You're crazy too!"

Another slam and bang. The boy chewed a little faster as he kept his eye on the action. Stupid little Hidan trying to order around the big bad puppeteer of the red sand. When Deidara first saw his head come off, he actually expected something of the teenager but now, all of those expectations went down the drain.

Sasori had no toleration for wasting materials and other items. It wasn't just his strict rules against breaking usable tools or making a mess, they were rules about only using what one needed, only sleeping when it was necessary, and eating food whenever it was possible. Unlike the greenery of Yugakure, Sasori had grown up in a desert village, a place that had limited access to water, food, or shelter. Naturally, raising Deidara came with its parenting woes, so the puppeteer had drawn on the methods that he'd grown up with. For the first few years of their time together, the puppeteer was actually much harsher with the boy than he was now. Training was treacherous and the expectations were as high as ever, barley a break from what Deidara was used to in Iwagakure. The boy was expected to follow orders and requests and didn't oppose the puppeteer unless necessary. When it came to food, the blond could only guess that Sasori had experienced famine at some point, and he was always encouraged to eat everything he was offered, be it even if he was stuffed.

One of these situations ended in Deidara throwing up.

Now, Hidan, he didn't know any of those struggles. Yugakure had always been prosperous and food was no problem due to the rich land around them as opposed to the borrowed plot of land the Sand had bought from the Leaf. So since then, Deidara had been barred off from allowing anyone to join him for lunch other than Itachi.

On the subject of Itachi, Hidan didn't have much of an opinion about him.

The boy didn't even introduce himself and surely did not try. The young Jashinist had no problems with that, and he didn't care to do so himself either. He could tell plainly that Deidara wasn't so chummy with Itachi as well, considering how often the boy so rudely scoffed his name. Whatever the hell went on between them in the past, Hidan wasn't curious enough to pry.

And then finally, it happened. He'd gotten back to their floor in the building only to come with the news that they had just received a new mission. Now, Hidan wasn't touchy with details. Frankly, he barely listened on the briefing from Kakuzu and considering how obvious it was that the teenager couldn't give a rats ass but the miser didn't comment, it seemed he couldn't give a rats ass either. It was a simple assignment, just go over to that crazy old man's old hideout and retrieve his stuff for a sick Itachi. Hidan didn't get why they needed to go to such lengths though, surely it couldn't be anything more than the cold or flu.

At this point, Hidan saw Kakuzu little more than an obstacle, an immovable object that also served as a wall in conversation. Didn't want to move, doesn't move, didn't want to talk, doesn't talk. That's how he'd started resorting to bothering other members into expanding his knowledge, all in the pursuit of figuring out who the heck these guys were, and when Hidan could be released from all this.

* * *

Such small pieces, but they would be necessary. No doubt would he have to replace them after a few years. His current subject would hit a growth spurt soon, so he'd made them a little larger for the occasion but even with all of his accumulated medical knowledge, he couldn't predict the exact proportions of a human as it aged. Legs lengthened with time, arms too but generally the head would stay the same. Of course, there were certain parts he couldn't predict at all how he would create them, all he had were diagrams and other sketchy accounts on how they worked and how they matured.

_Knock_

_ Knock_

Sasori couldn't suppress the surprised grunt he made, snapping out of his little world of thought. Returning to the reality of his stuffy, dark studio, the puppeteer quickly shot up and grabbed a navy blue tarp off of an unfinished puppet head hanging from the ceiling and hastily draped it over his desk. A layer of dust clouded from the spot but Sasori could care less. He had no idea who was knocking on the door but whoever they were, this needed to be hidden. This project was only meant for one set of eyes.

He almost slammed the drawers closed and quickly stashed a paper depicting a sketch underneath one of his textbooks from the private library. Giving one last look over the desk, Sasori deemed it normal enough and tried to calm his heart rate. The noise had surprised him. It had been a quiet full day since his subordinate left on his little assignment, so Sasori had easily gotten used to the silence he felt was so foreign nowadays.

Another knock sounded and a small bit of shuffling. He heard a tiny but shakily confident voice sound from the other side. "Deidara? Can you open the door?"

Looking for Deidara? It didn't sound like Pein or Konan so Sasori could relax a bit there. The redhead glanced at Hiruko in the corner of his room for a moment before he advanced towards the door. He quickly donned a mask of gentleness, having quite a good guess at who would be looking for the boy at this time of day.

He grabbed the knob of the door and twisted it to reveal the resident Uchiha at his step. Itachi looked up nervously, dreaded at the thought that he'd disturbed an elder such as the puppeteer. His eyes quickly avoided Sasori's stare, focusing on the door frame as he tried to speak. "I-is Deidara here?

The redhead poked his head out slightly and mustered up the voice he used so often to speak to the younger ones. Hidan was a new exception to that rule, he didn't want the rebellious teenager to get any ideas about Sasori's affections. "No, he isn't." The puppeteer opened the door enough to allow some viewing within his studio in a welcoming gesture. "Did you want to speak to him?"

Itachi blinked in disappointment and met his gaze. "...Not really, I just wanted to settle a small argument."

"Being the better man I see."

The young raven tilted his head slightly in confusion. Sasori simply huffed and crossed his arms. "I heard about your _little_ argument. Deidara told me about it, he didn't seem to take it so lightly as you describe it." He sensed the slight pang of guilt hit the younger, who's face fell at the very mention of it.

"I-I'm sorry, are you...angry?" Itachi squeaked out the last word. He knew that the blond and the puppeteer were close, much like parent and child. Most parents didn't like hearing bad things about their children, nor did they like hearing that they're children had experienced some sort of level of misery because of some other peer.

Sasori blinked and raised a brow. "No? Why would I? Deidara regularly argues with you, what makes this any different?"

"It's just..." Itachi paused for a moment. "he told me that during that incident a month ago, that you tried really hard to help me. Not just you, everyone did. I was ungrateful and ended up making him angry. I want to apologize and maybe return the favour to you or the others later."

_What a thoughtful idea_. Sasori mused at the notion in his head. These kids really had no idea how things worked around here, always looking at the world through rose coloured glasses. It may have seemed harsh enough but the way that story had gone so far as Sasori saw it was too peppered up for his taste. Forgiveness was an aspect of maintaining relationships, bonds with other people, something that wasn't supposed to exist in their organization, nor anywhere in the rogue community. Such a selfless thought, so plainly fragile.

"Well, I'm afraid I have no bright ideas on ways you could make anything up to me, or us. No one expects anything from you. It was an order from Leader, that's all." Sasori put his hand on the door knob. "Deidara will be probably be back in a day or two. Are you in a rush or...?"

"No, no, I'll wait. Kisame just left to go on an errand somewhere, so I just thought since I had the free time and all..." Itachi trailed off. He managed a long stare at his feet. "I'm sorry, I'm just wasting your time-"

"It's fine, I don't mind, really." Sasori interrupted. Without thinking about it, the puppeteer pushed the door further into the room, rousing the boy's attention. "You want to come in?"

_In there?_ Itachi considered the offer, staring into the darkness of the room. It sounded a bit suspicious no doubt but Sasori seemed like a kind person, if only towards children. He appeared to treat Deidara well enough and the two seemed to have minimal problems. He'd never gone into the artist duo's residence before, only heard small casual mentions from the boy himself about it. According to the eleven-year old, the place was spacious but stuffy. He seemed to have a space all his own away from Sasori's studio, an area that wasn't choked up in wood dust.

"I'm working but I'm used to a bit of noise." Sasori walked into the workshop and flipped a switch by the wall. Two long parallel lights flickered and finally lit a steady glow over the room, revealing rows upon rows of undressed puppets hanging from the ceiling, creating small shadows on the floor. They appeared to be attached to a thick wire, each ringed around their necks like hanged bodies.

Itachi hesitantly stepped into the room, eyes rose towards the ceiling in pure awe. To think that this was what Deidara woke up to every day, it seemed unimaginable. His attentions fell away from the high ceiling and to the room around them. Three desks were put together along the side of the wall to the left, another one connected to them in a workspace in the corner. They were littered with scrolls messily sat open save for a blue tarp laid over the middle desk, each one containing a formula that looked dangerously complicated. Itachi didn't want to finish the thought of what was underneath that tarp. The shelves above the desks were lined with sliding glass panels with some books stacked off in the corner and collections of beakers of three sizes. Towards the middle of the right side of the room was an steel operating table. No dust was on it, in fact, no dust was anywhere here. Either Deidara was was delusional or Sasori had just recently finished spring cleaning, in the fall.

"Deidara said it was stuffy here." Itachi commented and looked curiously at the puppeteer standing by the blue tarp. The door was left hanging open, probably as a sign from the redhead that he meant no harm and that the Uchiha was free to leave whenever, or of course, Sasori had forgotten about it.

"Stuffy? What do you mean?" Sasori blinked. This concept was obviously novel to him.

"He used to always complain that it was hard to breath in your studio. That it was full of wood dust. Did you two finally clean up?"

_Really?_ Sasori frowned. Had the boy really been keeping that hidden from him for so many years? Perhaps that was why the child requested a place separate for him to sleep. It didn't take a genius to figure out how the elder didn't know. The puppeteer was, well, a puppet. Puppets couldn't breath, and the redhead had rid of his respiratory system almost a decade ago. Over time, he'd never noticed the room go stale, but he did notice once when he decided to stay at the Ame tower for a week.

_The sound of light coughing caught his attention. Sasori straightened over the block of wood on his desk, half way finished to being a palm for his next project. He twisted his head backwards to scan the room over for the source of the sound, finally settling on a staggering figure heading towards the door. It was the child he took in last year, a little blond boy from Iwa. Sasori blinked and decided to speak. "Where are you going?"_

_ Deidara froze, then straightened his back. The boy seemed to be red faced, light-headed looking as he turned to face his master. "Bathroom."_

_ Sasori raised a brow in concern. "Are you alright?"_

_ "Un, of course." The child averted his gaze from the puppeteers, unaware that doing so easily revealed the lie. As the silence dragged on, the redhead heard some strange grunts from the boy, almost as if he were choking, though he guessed he was just holding in the coughs. _

_ "You don't sound alright."_

_ "I-it's nothing. I just need to get a glass of water." Deidara stammered. _

_ "From the bathroom?" _

Deidara was a terrible liar, and he hadn't gotten much better as the years went on. Sasori could tell something was wrong but the symptoms went away by the time the puppeteer deemed the boy old enough to leave the tower without being accompanied by him. The child went out once a day without fail, usually for hours on end and returned just before the clock hit ten. Darkness was no problem, the village usually lit up during the waning hours so as long as he made it back before sketchy activity in the streets started up. Sasori thought his training made his subordinate quite capable of dealing with petty thieves or possible child abductors. Back then, he wrote off the coughs after they disappeared as a strange case, but didn't question it. Now he knew why Deidara didn't stay in the workshop for long periods of time, or at least retreated to his room where the dust in the oxygen was dilute.

"N-no, there was an accident." Sasori said. "I'm not sure who but I'm betting it was Kakuzu who threw Hidan through the wall of my original studio. While I was trying to get him under control, the place was torn apart so I rebuilt here." He took a gander around the room. "It's a little smaller but it's enough."

Itachi nodded and turned towards the door. He inspected the knob for a moment to make sure it would not lock upon closing and pressed it shut. Meanwhile, the puppeteer stared at the blue tarp, berating himself mentally for choosing a youth over his project. Oh well, too late to kick the kid out now.

"You know, Deidara doesn't talk to me much anymore." Sasori chortled with a small smile. "I mean, he still does but he's seems more interested in bothering you now."

The raven turned to the puppeteer in surprise. "Really?"

"Really. Until Hidan came along, you were the only thing on his mind." The former sand ninja mused. "He's always complaining about you or mentioning you casually. I think he likes Kisame too, he starting him danna as I've discovered."

"I think he's been calling him that for a long time now." Itachi informed him. "It's not new to me."

The young Uchiha wandered the room, staying a certain distance away from the saw machines set up around the middle of the floor. From here, he could see Hiruko sitting lifelessly by the desk, a black tarp draped over it, dead eyes burning into the wall. A painting was set up over a bed at the edge of the room, seemingly an ink print of a large koi fish. Sasori seemed to have some sense of interior design, though Itachi wouldn't be surprised if that was the case.

Off to the side, a curious door was next to a shelf littered messily organized papers and old books. Itachi regarded the door for a moment, then turned to check if Sasori was paying attention. He was brought with the sight of the puppeteer hunched over his desk, absorbed in a conceptual drawing by a lamp. He didn't seem to be paying him any mind.

Questions bubbled up in his head and the Uchiha approached the door. He gave it a look over before turning the knob and prying it open a tiny crack. Itachi tried to peek through the crack and spy for anything in the darkness. All he could make out with the thin stray beam of light were shelves lined with bags of various brown tablets. The room smelled like wood, but not of the kind that Sasori worked with. It smelled like shavings, and the freshness of jungle water. Itachi peered over over his shoulder to check with the puppeteer again, only to find that the redhead seemed to be busy with himself.

Given the green light to keep exploring, Itachi pulled open the door the entire way and strolled inside. He patted the wall for a switch, finding none on the wall. The Uchiha squinted through the darkness and fumbled with the walls by the door, attempting to find some sort of button or latch. Instead, his fingertips clumsily hit something cold.

_CRASH _

_ KLANG_

_ Fsss..._

Sasori almost jumped out of his seat, caught off guard by the loud sound. He looked around for a moment and realized that the noise came from the storage. Immediately, the puppeteer shot up and darted over, entering the room and flipping the switch on the other wall.

A nightmare.

Dry food and several scorpions crawling over the broken shards of jar glass were strewn across the floor. One of the small shelves was knocked over, all of its contents shattered beneath it, luckily out of sight of the horrified redhead. Moths were flying freely around the room and he swore he saw a millipede dart over the floor by his feet. His collection of rats to feed the animals were pouring out of the now broken gallon container, leaving little pellets of feces out of fear in their sudden freedom. In the middle of it all stood Itachi, face pale like a deer caught in the head lights.

The two stared at each other for a moment as Itachi waited anxiously for any sort of reaction to come out of the Akatsuki member. A full minute of pregnant silence passed before the puppeteer made a stifled grunt, eyes closing as he massaged the bridge of his nose out of instinct.

"Itachi..."


	53. A First Glimpse into Reality

**A First Glimpse into Reality**

"Itachi...why didn't you ask me if you could go into this room?" Sasori suppressed himself from shouting. Feeling the need to scold children wasn't a new emotion, he'd had to deal with that for as long as he had Deidara under his wing, but the child had always made sure to ask permission before going ahead with daunting task. He never needed to keep a constant watch on the blond. He never imagined that something like this could be the fault of such a responsible, competent, and mature child such as Itachi. Or at least, he thought so.

"I-I apologize! I'll clean up!" Itachi took quick stagger back and felt something animated crush beneath his shoe, sending a shiver up his spine. The dying squeak of a bug or mouse made the Uchiha's skin crawl, looking down only to see the clear fluids leak out of the now crushed body of a tarantula. Itachi paled as white as sheet, quickly lifting his shoe off the floor only to hear the sickening crack of the spider's exoskeleton creak under his weight. Strange gooey substances splattered on the ground.

"JUST. Don't. Move." Sasori hissed, holding a hand up for emphasis. "I'll clean it up. Walk towards me _slowly_." The puppeteer stole a quick glance over his shoulder, morale dipping with every mouse he saw skitter across his sight. All of his materials, all of the animals he harvested venom and poison from, all let free to destroy the workshop. Sasori couldn't afford to lose another one of them. He had some valuable specimens, and he couldn't tell entirely from the mess whether the tarantula Itachi had just squashed was 13B, a spider he caught all the way in the Land of Iron, a species estimated populous to be only in the hundreds back when he caught it.

Itachi nodded stiffly and lightly stepped over the broken shards of glass and dry pellets, narrowly missing some millipedes and mice. The scorpions seemed to have hidden away in the darker sections of the room, few actually trying to escape. Itachi finally made his way over to Sasori's side, who then instructed the boy to go into the workshop and stay still.

The moment Itachi left the room, he could hear the redhead explode in frustrated curses and incoherent words. The boy shrugged away from the door and took a better look at the destruction of the workshop before him. Poison dart frogs chilled in the shelves while the floor was overrun with mice and millipedes, some mice eating millipedes. An small aquarium in the shelf had its puffer fish population of three panicked in a frenzy as two mice creaked on the edge of the glass and fell in.

Off to a corner, Itachi saw a form slither across the floor. It was a small snake, coloured in a series of yellow bands between red and black sections. It curled up by a chair leg, tongue flickering out curiously at the sight of a godly amount of prey. Itachi thought for a moment that it would lie still and strike the moment a mice crossed its path but even as a couple more did just that, the snake remained still. The serpent eventually slithered away from the chair leg and made it for the door

Sasori peered out of the room and snapped his gaze to the snake immediately. Without another thought, he shouted, "Hey! Get that snake!"

The order came too late as the animal had already slithered underneath the door and out into the hall. Itachi was left frozen on the spot, then cautiously moved his gaze to look at the elder from the corner of his eye.

Now Sasori didn't show many extreme emotions. Itachi had learned that over the course of a month and thanks to Deidara's explanations, the reason why was plainly because the redhead was not of flesh and bone. He didn't know the specifics, but he did know that because of that, the puppeteer had gained a reputation among the organization for being cool-headed and calculated in even the most extreme of situations. Looking at the Akatsuki member now, he seemed to be attempting to redraw that stone-face look he was supposed to wear.

Three mice trampled the navy blue tarp and sent the cover sliding off the desk, sending the valuable puppet parts underneath clattering to the floor. Itachi stared for a moment, but didn't think for a second that the puppet parts were unusually small. Unlike the blond, he had no familiarity whatsoever with Sasori's work and didn't see the difference between these parts and ones hanging under the ceiling lights.

Sasori let out another frustrated grumble. "Alright, maybe you can help a little."

* * *

In the short span of five hours, Itachi had redeemed himself in the eyes of the puppeteer. The boy was obviously quite good at organizing things like binders, numbered solution bottles, and trapping mice to get them back into the room. Itachi didn't even try to argue like Deidara often did, remaining quiet and obedient, always following orders without the slightest protest. Itachi didn't act as if he knew better than Sasori but he did hesitate to ask for help every now and then. For clear reasons, the puppeteer didn't allow the boy to handle any of the poisonous or venomous animals that Sasori kept. That would be the one thing that Deidara was good for, even if the blond had only recently got a knack of not making creatures act aggressively towards him. If he remembered correctly, the animals used to absolutely despise the young bomber, the frogs used to be particularly skittish in his presence.

Itachi lifted the cage and peered past the tiny wire bars into the four scrambling mice inside, scratching at the walls desperately. Satisfied with his work, the Uchiha jogged across the room and into the storage, approaching a cylindrical grey tub in the back. He put the cage down and unlocked a latch to open a hole in the glass cover. Opening the entire lid would definitely make a huge opening for the mice to escape, so Itachi had to learn that there were safer measures to restocking the live food tub. He picked up the cage and swiftly opened the trap door, dumping the four mice into the hole to join the other 38. A total of fifty according to Sasori. Itachi had kept a careful count of the ones he caught but even as the room gradually emptied after Sasori did his share of rounding up the escaped frogs, scorpions, millipedes, and moths, he hadn't found them all.

Itachi closed the lid and took a last look at his work. Either the last few were really good at hiding or had already escaped the room. If that was the case, than he'd have to take the puppeteer's advice. Once they left the room, it was pointless to go after them. In total, they'd lost one snake, five millipedes, nine mice and one puffer fish. That puffer fish had died of shock.

Outside of the room, he could see Sasori painstakingly lay out several papers on the desks, stacking a select few in chronological order. When Itachi approached, the puppeteer quickly took notice and turned to listen.

"I'm finished." Itachi remained low in tone. Surely Sasori could understand that a few had gone missing out of thin air.

"Good, did you get all of them?"

The boy stood silent for a moment, then forced himself to confess regardless of the consequences. "Um, there are only 41 but...I can't find any more." He looked at the floor, avoiding the others gaze.

"Are you sure? Did you check?" Sasori didn't sound angry.

Itachi raised his head to face the rather neutral expression of the elder. It relaxed him slightly to see that he wasn't being chastised for faults like he expected of a parent to do. Perhaps Saosri was less strict than he appeared?

"Good, you did well thank you." The puppeteer turned back to his papers but stared at them for a moment in thought. He turned back to Itachi for what he assumed to be a last word. "You're free to leave if you'd like. I'll handle the rest here."

_I guess he doesn't want me to snoop anymore_. The raven wasn't fond of the idea that he was snooping, the very word itself he'd never applied to his own actions. Okay, maybe he was a little bit an eavesdropper, he could finally admit that to himself, but it wasn't as if he was comfortable thinking it.

Itachi gazed over at the door as Sasori worked and wondered briefly if it was worth going out again. The rain village was a dreary place and even their cafe's were a bit grey. He of course had the options of checking out the market a ways away from here which was usually bustling with activity, but Itachi just wasn't fond of the lively nature of it. Kisame wasn't due back until tomorrow, and though he'd come here to share his company with Deidara out of guilt, his hopes were dashed when he was informed that the boy was absent as well.

Konan wouldn't want his company. She was probably busy and Itachi was pretty sure he wasn't allowed to know anything of Pein's activities, much less talk to him in his spare time.

Well, Sasori wasn't so bad. Just be a little more careful and he might be able to be as relaxed as Deidara was around him(if relaxed could be the word for it). Maybe this do him well into the future, Itachi didn't know but he had a hunch that he could learn a thing or two from him.

"Actually, can I stay for a little while?" Itachi pressed his lips together. There, he just asked. Now for the answer.

The puppeteer set down his papers on an angle as to set the stack and the waiting sheets apart to look at him. Sasori blinked once and turned back to his work. "Fine by me, but ask if you find anything you want to touch."

Itachi meant to utter another thanks but instead, he found himself choked up and only let out a grunt. Luckily, it didn't come out as some strangled cry but just an understanding sound. He took gander around the room. Sasori really knew how to clean up. The place looked virtually the same as before if it weren't for the occasional different set up and order of items.

"Now then, what did you come here for again?" Sasori wondered aloud, surprising the boy a little. "Oh right, we were talking about you and the brat's argument. I've been meaning to ask, how is he nowadays?"

"Oh, he's...okay. I don't think he likes Hidan that much." Itachi crossed his arms and pinched his chin, attempting to give as accurate a description as possible.

"I thought they liked each other." Sasori brought up. "They fight a lot but I'm sure that the kid's hiding something..."

"W-what's that supposed to mean?" Itachi was a little dumbfounded at how the other thought that fighting was a form of bonding, letting his arms fall in complete confusion.

"Hmm, well, when I was young, I heard that when a girl teases you, it meant they liked you. Picking fights counts too I believe."

Itachi couldn't believe it. He was actually hearing out an Akatsuki member's views on what he thought counted as flirting between youths in a casual conversation. Sasori too of all people, heck, if he was asked to pick between who was more likely to bring this up in a chat, he would have chosen Kisame. Not for a second did he think that in any shape or form did Hidan and Deidara flirt with each other. The thought never entered his mind about anyone when he got here. He expected to have left this stuff behind the moment he turned chunin.

"O-ok, even then, they're boys-"

"So?" Sasori interrupted much too nonchalantly for Itachi's own comfort. "It's never happened to me personally but I made sure to educate Deidara on matters like that. Just in case it's true."

Itachi blinked. "E-educate?"

* * *

"How can you live your life like that? Relying on money and nothing else." Hidan scoffed, keeping a distance of exactly five meters from his assigned partner. Five meters was all he could manage before Kakuzu was completely out of sight. The mist had lowered once again and the teenager feared that the thicker it got, the closer he'd have to get in order to follow his partner. Not that he was scared, but he knew that he ran his mouth a lot, and the least he could do for himself was stay out of striking range. He could do nothing to defend himself now. His scythe had been confiscated until he could learn not to wield it against his own.

"Tch. Wait a few years, you'll learn." Kakuzu grumbled as he slipped a wad of bills out of his sleeve, checking carefully to see that it wasn't being dampened due to the mist. "Money is what makes the world go round. To put into words you might understand, shinobi go on missions. Why? For the money."

"Eh? That's not true! They do it to serve the village!" Hidan snapped and sent his glare into the bushes. "At least the good ones do. Those ones are the most satisfying kill." He smirked at the thought.

Kakuzu looked at the fledgling from the corner of his eye, then huffed. "If that were true, they wouldn't be joining villages at all, they'd make their own. Perhaps some do, but in the end, if there's no money going in, they're bailing out. Only a prideful idiot would stick behind in such a hopeless state."

"That's cause you're old!" Hidan argued sharply. "Old people don't get it, they're too stuck up on money when they don't realize that there's more than that!"

"Money is the cause of all issues. If it isn't money, it's the currency of the society at the time." Kakuzu tried to put it wisely. At his age, he felt a little entitled to provide whatever wisdom he could give. This kid at 14 was only his partner for a few weeks and he was already a pain in the ass. Kakuzu would make his final complaint to leader before taking things into his own hands.

He heard another protest from behind him but the miser was no longer listening. Eyes focused on the road, he made a sharp right and darted into the woods soundlessly.

"Oi! Where are you going!?" Hidan yapped with no reply. He turned to the road ahead and squinted to spy out anyone approaching. So far, no one could be seen past the thick fog, nothing but a couple of flies.

Before he could make another statement, an arm poked out of the brush and snatched his cloak, dragging him forcefully into the forest. Emerging out on the other side, he was shoved around and forced to stare into a grassy clearing next to the wall of a stone cliff.

"That. Hurt!" The fourteen year old was quick to snap.

"Just shut up for the rest of the mission at least." Kakuzu growled dangerously.

"The rest?" Hidan repeated. He grit his teeth but then followed the miser's gaze to the wall. He seemed to be fascinated with it just to keep staring. For a moment, the zealot thought that the old man had finally fallen from his rocker.

"This is the place."

It was a simple clearing filled with dampened grass and piles of crimson and gold leaves. The trees were near bare save for some small patches that stuck out the cold. The area seemed like an ideal camp site, an overhanging cliff providing one less spot to stay on guard from. Kakuzu slipped out a folded map and checked their location. Pencilled lines made by the Akatsuki's first and probably best puppeteer sketched out the area where his summer hideout was. The Akatsuki were not limited to the organization's hideouts though they were convenient. Sasori in particular had his own network of spots dotting the south of the shinobi lands, mostly concentrated in the Land of Wind, he had his fair share of sites in the Land of Rivers. This place was one of them.

According to Sasori, as long as one of them wore the Akatsuki ring, they'd be fine to enter. The puppeteer had already warned Kakuzu of his security system. It was necessary in order to remain in one spot for a whole month without being caught by shinobi crossing over from the Land of Wind or Fire.

"What? A wall?" Hidan questioned. "...Do you need glasses?"

_THWACK_

Kakuzu ignored the pained cry from his so-called partner as well as the large red bump forming on the teenager's skull. He approached the clearing cautiously, knowing that he was treading over the territory of a fellow Akatsuki member.

His next step entered an area as Kakuzu heard a faint snap sound. No sooner than that, the ground suddenly began to shake, forcing the miser to jump back.

Erupting from the ground were a dozen of green-eyed puppets, each of them donning four lanky arms tied up in disrepair in each others. Apart from the dirt, one could see the tearing of something red and black, what could be rotted cloth and previously clothing on the puppets now reduced to a weak and wet mush. Spider-like puppets, their shells flaked and cracked under their movement, wood now brittle and fell away to reveal their steel organs, now red and rusty.

_A trap?_ Kakuzu thought.

* * *

"Oh I see, you already know about this stuff." Sasori pushed the marker board back out into the hall to the relief of the younger.

Itachi had almost paled at the idea that the redhead was willing to 'educate' him on matters he'd apparently gone over with Deidara. His rushed protests finally seemed to reach Sasori, and just in the nick of time. Of course, the Uchiha wasn't about to admit that he actually knew very little about the matters of reproduction and since he didn't plan on having children, he was pretty sure he didn't need the information in much detail.

"I guess I should expect that. You're after all..." Sasori paused and looked up in thought. "How old are you now?"

"I'm still thirteen." The raven sighed afterwards, taking a seat on a wooden chair. The puppeteer was friendly at least, didn't even try to bring up Itachi's little mishap in the storage room.

The door closed with a silent click. Sasori blinked. "Even if you argued, I still think you two get along." He chuckled warmly, surprising the young member. "Deidara probably told you some things about me. What did he tell you?"

_Do they really not talk that much anymore? Because of me?_ Itachi's face fell as he felt something churn in his chest. The puppeteer seemed to talk so fondly of the blond, as if the two hadn't been reunited in years. He still didn't want to believe the Akatsuki was supposed to be a nice place. Already, he'd witnessed the wrath of Pein, their leader and the extraordinary abilities of people like Deidara who weren't even members. This kind of softness, it didn't occur to him that this could happen.

And yet it was happening, and it happened more often than he thought. It must have been a human thing. Killer or not, though some were cold-blooded, it required some degree of humanity to be completely cruel. Itachi had thought about it before. Everyone had a weakness, it was just a human thing. Was this?

"Not much. He's told me that you're not...made of human flesh. Is that true?" Itachi attempted to put the question forward as non-threateningly as he could. Such secrets tended to be personal if not only a probable aspect of Sasori's arsenal or past.

"Yes, to a degree."

That was surprisingly easy. Though however easy it was, the boy wasn't eager to dig deeper into the topic. Instead he continued on with his answer. "Deidara does a lot of art. Those sculptures and makes them explode. I remember back at the village when I joined, he tried to impress a crowd with fireworks. He's quite good at it."

"Oh yes, those things." The redhead held a tone of fondness. "They're quite cute-ah" He quickly glanced at Itachi, wondering if the boy had an opinion his choice of words. "-well, I like them. Not so much when they explode but they have to. I think they'd be better off like my puppets, long lasting. It's a bit of a waste for them to just disappear after being made."

"You two think differently about art?"

"Do we?" Sasori raised a brow curiously.

"I don't really know." Itachi thought back to the village by the now burnt temple. Back to when he and the boy sat on that bench by the park and got into an unusually deep conversation.

_Itachi kept silent, head bowed with a bleak look. Deidara pursed his lips, glancing over before he returned his smile, a more honest one. "That's good! Don't forget those times!"_

_This seemed to pique the thirteen-year old's curiosity, both children now locking gazes. The subordinate giggled and pulled out a clay bird with an incredibly simple design from his sleeve. He held it in his hand. "This is my art, but it's more than this. Danna always had some sort of saying to his own art, so I made one up myself!"_

_Deidara raised his bird. "They're like memories. We always have them, whether they're sad or happy. The happy are the good ones, and the best part is that they're gone!"_

_It unfurled from the palm, flexing its wings before darting into a tight spiral above them towards the blue sky. The boy made a one-handed seal, keeping his eyes on the bird before it exploded in a small 'poof', coloured sparks rained down harmlessly, a tiny firework._

_"Everyone has some time in their life they miss, something they want back. That's when we learn to appreciate that time we had. It was short, but beautiful, and once it's gone, we remember it forever!" Deidara turned to Itachi. "We're not little kids anymore, so we can't play like them. We can try, but we can't get what used to be back. It's gone, it's never coming back, not the same anyway. After that, we get sad and cry over it, because we realize how beautiful it was."_

_The blond's wild expression softened, staring down at the ant at their feet. "I see it a lot. When we try to play with the kids, it doesn't come out the way we wanted it. We're different now, and no matter how hard we try, we can't get it back."_

"He told me that...art was like a memory, fleeting." That was the best way he could word it without going on a long three page monologue. Itachi was sure of it, that's what the blond thought. He nodded and looked up to see Sasori paused over his desk, back turned and still. "That's when he told me that he didn't know how he wanted to die, then, that fight happened, and I guess..." He trailed off.

"He thinks now his purpose is to die for you."

* * *

_(Naruto Shippuden Movie 3 OST 28 – A Call to Halt Vulgarity)_

Several arms dragged up at once to try and capture the young Jashinist in a tangle, only to provide as a foothold as the teenager hopped onto the bundle of wood and jumped into the air, cloak flitting slightly. Hidan made a low growl. What an annoyance, a trap here of all places and at the very time he lacked his signature weapon of choice. Now he was restricted to nothing but his average taijutsu and dodging skills to get by. He hated having to do it, but he was relying on Kakuzu right now to get them out of this situation.

The mist made it harder to see as the puppets arms snaked across the ground and swept the open grassy field with ease. No where on the ground was safe and even in the air as the younger was, it wasn't safe either. Anywhere within a good five meters was fair game to these decayed puppets. All of his years in the Jashinist cult, Hidan remembered training underneath them to fight opponents in order to heighten the values of his kills. It annoyed him that he had to tear up petty puppets, objects of all things.

Landing on a thin branch, Hidan felt his stomach drop as the branch nearly broke underneath his weight. Luckily, the dampened limb only bobbed and slowly stabilized, but would definitely break if he made any sudden movements. Below the mist, the puppets clacked and creaked, unusually loud. On the field, he could see broken parts on the floor, cracked and broken from the intensive movements of the puppets themselves. These things seemed to have seen better days, the shells of his backs and faces cracked and flaked, dry mud splattered over their bodies. Their arms took the most stress, being swung around like whips took a toll, the only upside for them being that they were unpredictable. Occasionally, the joint would snap and the puppet arm would go flying into the distance. Hidan had a close call when a sharp rusty steel ring almost collided with him square in the face.

Kakuzu seemed only to be annoyed. As each and every puppet came to face him off, the miser didn't even have to look at them to dodge their attack and grab their arms, tearing them straight off of their weak sockets before tossing them in some random direction. Kakuzu dodged an attack swung from above, a long multi-segmented arm slammed the floor with deadly force, not before the Akatsuki could side step it however. On its rebound, Kakuzu grabbed the arm and pulled the puppet closer, throwing it into another puppet. The miser wasn't even working up a sweat.

It felt like they'd been fighting for twenty minutes, an unusually long time to end a small scuffle. The puppets weren't live people, so when thrown down, they just got right back up. Even after they'd lost heads, arms, legs, they kept coming, barraging them with body parts until they were sawdust. Hidan could imagine it at least. Well, if it meant grinding them to dust, it wasn't as if he didn't all of eternity to do it.

Hidan tried to off off the branch but felt something cold coil around his neck. He turned down to catch a glimpse of the puppet at his feet, one arm wrapped around his ankle as it stared at him with what remained of his face, a good portion of the right side of the skull cracked open like an egg.

With a harsh yank, Hidan was sent to the floor with a sickening thud. His eyes were wide for a moment, appalled that a puppet had that much power. He didn't just lay there however, he scraped the floor with his hands and tried to get up only to see the looming figure of the puppet over him, mouth gaped open with a sharp projectile sticking out of its mouth. Hidan growled and faced it head on. If it was going to shoot him with it, he might as well get it over with. He wouldn't cower away at something so shallow as a puppet.

The puppet stared at him, dead orbs gleaming dully in the low light. It loomed over him for a full ten seconds before it suddenly flopped to the floor, rolling over. Hidan blinked, then jumped slightly at the sounds of several more puppets dropping to the floor in the distance.

Kakuzu held up an arm to block but the coming swing was weak and lazy, practically slapping him on the wrist. The miser didn't react at first when the puppet suddenly fell to its knees and rolled over like a dead corpse. When he did, he refused to show much surprise, simply staring as the puppets around began to drop like flies.

The Akatsuki blinked and looked around, suddenly noticing a figure perched at the top of the cliff. Through the mist, he couldn't see much but Kakuzu could tell their new guest was wearing a cloak. He immediately grew tense. Had they been caught? As far as he knew, hooded cloaks were primarily worn by shinobi on missions or more commonly, the ANBU. If that was the case, this assignment had a little too much in store.

The cloaked figure shifted their weight then hopped down in front of the cliff wall to their level. Upon closer inspection, Kakuzu could easily tell this person was small, short in stature for even a short adult. They moved closer with small measured steps before finally coming close enough that the mist didn't obscure his view.

"Calm down, it's just me." The stranger lifted an hand up to their hood and pulled it off, revealing a familiar face.

Kakuzu relaxed slightly at the sight of a curious blue eye an a slightly nervous expression. Just Deidara, Sasori's prime subordinate. The blond blinked up at him and quickly looked away. In one hand he held a selection of similarly coloured seals, piquing the miser's curiosity at the sight of them.

Hidan shoved the puppet off of him and stood up, making a loud groan of frustration as he stomped the doll's face in. "Haha! Too weak to get up eh!?" He grinned victoriously and looked over at his partner. "Kakuzu! What happe-" He paused. Someone else seemed to be the subject of the his fellow member now. Hidan blinked. Is that?

"So what are you doing here? Who sent you?" Kakuzu grumbled.

"Isn't it obvious? Danna did, hmph." Deidara kept his gaze on the man's cloak. Whatever enthusiasm he got to coming in the nick of time, he still lost all of his confidence the moment he felt the elder's gaze on him. "Danna set up the trap when we stayed here to fend off intruders but he just remembered after you guys left that he hadn't kept the puppets in good shape since then. He thought they would malfunction so he told me to come and stop you."

_That little brat of a puppeteer._ The miser grumbled in this throat. _Always forgetting something._ It was a frequent trait of the sand ninja that only someone who had been working long enough in the Akatsuki to see his debut could possible see. His constant weakness, so much that the brat hadn't even tried to improve himself and make up for it. Sasori's inability to pay attention while absorbed into his work was a problematic behaviour of his. It was almost as if the real world didn't exist whenever he was creating his 'art pieces', he couldn't hear the steps in the hall or the door knob click and swing the door open. He often never heard it when someone spoke while he was working, and in the beginning, ended up having troubles following orders without being physically pushed first. Sasori was always thinking of his projects and make no mistake, he didn't think of anything else. Everything was a project to the man, even his co-workers and superiors. Regardless of it all, Kakuzu knew he was a million years from ever figuring out that perhaps it was time to lay off the drawing board and actually completing his priorities list.

Kakuzu huffed. "You're too late. Hidan already sprung the trap."

"I did what now!?"

Taking his mind off of the puppeteer, the miser made a cold glare at the young bomber. He could practically feel the fear radiating off of him. He knew fear when he saw it. "Those tags, what are they?"

Deidara looked up and brought the tags to view. His usual numbered ones, his master had given him a new set of ten to use just a few weeks ago. "These are..."

* * *

"Art is fleeting?" Sasori pondered the idea out loud.

Itachi waited patiently for the next sign he could continue his monologue. Instead, he was stopped midway when the puppeteer suddenly seemed to go cold at the very notion that art could be transient. Now the redhead stood by his desk, barely touching his papers laid out on the surface in orderly fashion.

"I don't get that. Itachi, how can that be?" Sasori turned and looked at the younger not with a face of curiosity but unusual coldness. All emotion seemed to leave his expression, not even his eyes held a shred of feeling. "How can art be fleeting? That doesn't make sense. What does that have to do with Deidara dying?"

"Um, well, I don't know-"

"Come on, you understand the brat better than I do, how can he say that?" Sasori's words became more rushed, more desperate in tone. "What happened to him?"

"I don't know Sasori." Itachi's eyes widened slightly. He'd never seen the puppeteer so confused, so angered by his own inability to comprehend such a small statement. Just as the elders words became rushed, so did his own, the atmosphere suddenly growing thick and tense. "I don't know anything...about him."

"So it doesn't make sense to you either?" The puppeteer head clicked and flopped to a single side. The motion itself was creepy, as if he'd just broken his neck. "Then it was him who made up such an idea? What kind of kind of idea is that? Do you know? Do you think the brat's crazy or troubled? What's wrong with him?"

His glass eyes moved to stare in Itachi's direction. Not at him per say, but he could see it. The hollowness in his gaze. Sasori was no longer looking at him, but through him.

"What's wrong with Deidara? Come on, tell me."

* * *

**A/N: Hello! As of recent, these author's notes have been getting short but now I finally have something to talk about. I decided it's time I get to the main point of this story and why I wrote it to begin with, ehhh, the main idea kinda. I had a bit of trouble writing the fight scene since I don't really know how to describe Kakuzu's kind of fighting style or how to describe the puppets. I've been writing a new story on my leisure but that's a Mpreg! I probably won't post it, it's really not something I think you guys are interested in. **

**Thanks for reading! Nice to Meet ya! Review if you'd like!**


	54. In the Loving Memory

**In The Loving Memory**

That faint past I remember

That moment of enlightenment

When I held you

It was that fateful day I realized

I never wanted this to end

_(Naruto Shippuden OST 1 Track 17- Setting sun)_

_"Aren't you overworking him a little?" Tobi tilted his head slightly, pinching his chin in thought with his arms crossed. In the middle of the clearing, a low-ranking puppet was duking it out with the Akatsuki's newest addition. Taijutsu training with Deidara though the masked man would have thought sparring with a real partner would have benefited the child better._

_"This is how it always goes where I'm from. Young puppeteers like me would spar with puppets and puppets only." Sasori explained briefly, a single hand raised and poised. Barely visible blue strings glided over the scene, directing the puppet to made a swinging motion with its arm before whirling around for a fairly strong kick. The boy ducked underneath the first attack but was quickly swept off his feet by the kick, sent tumbling to the floor._

_"Well, Deidara's not a puppeteer nor a puppet." Tobi cocked his head slightly, though the other didn't really acknowledge his remark. Sasori simply kept his eyes on the field, some form of emotion in them, though even with Tobi's sharp eyes, he couldn't read them._

_In plainer sight, one could easily see the bruises visible on Deidara's body, darker spots and some even appearing bluish. They'd been training since dawn and all of yesterday. Tobi thought that the summer was a time to relax but as it seemed, summer was the peak of lessons from the hardened sand ninja. The boy lifted an arm and tried to haul his torso off the ground, but the moment he could raise his head he ducked again as a wooden hand struck the tree behind him._

Deidara stared at the old dent. Only he could recognize the impacted spot on that tree. At first he remembered being appalled at how familiar Sasori's training methods seemed to be in difficulty to the ones he received in Iwagakure. He was tough and strict, always pushing him harder. Even though the blond could easily see past his gaze, the flashes of regret that plagued the puppeteer every time a new bruise formed, a new cut made.

The eleven-year old's eyes lidded slightly at the memory, counting the days since then. Sasori had changed behaviour quite a bit. Now the puppeteer didn't drive him nearly as harshly as he used to, simply edging him along and encouraging the boy to train on his own time while he finished up remodelling puppets in his studio. Times had changed, and the puppet Sasori was crafting at the time had just been created. Deidara used to hate that puppet, thinking it was the cause of all of his pain back then.

Well, no matter. Kakuzu was waiting and Deidara had no intention of getting on his bad side. The blond turned away from the old tree and kept a steady gaze on the old man's cloak. He wouldn't dare look Kakuzu in the eye. The two official Akatsuki members stepped back from the wall and allowed the boy to pass, the miser's stare specifically felt the worst.

Standing just a foot from the wall, Deidara ignored the gazes on his back and selected a sealing tag from his selection. Number 5 would do it. He slipped the tag out of the collection and pressed it to the wall, then backed away as the scent of smoke and ash filled his nostrils.

"It's supposed to open up after the puppets are defeated or the trap is broken." Deidara explained briefly. "But I guess it doesn't work anymore."

_"So...under the ground is a bunch of puppets?"_

_"That's right!" Tobi clapped, hopping on a single leg. "Sasori was nice enough to set up a security system just in case any intruders come. All for our own safety!"_

_Deidara blinked slowly and looked at the grass beneath his feet for a few seconds. That sounded nice, but why would he do that? Surely the puppeteer was confident enough that he could defend them all on his own, they wouldn't need some fancy sealing jutsu to do it for him. He looked at his babysitter blankly and turned for the entrance of the hideout, more interested in his danna._

Beneath the odd numbered seal, another seal faded into sight, its corners already blackened and charred as the fire ate away slowly at the seal. The edges peeled up and curled, then broke into nothing but a fine ash. A wisp of smoke arose as the last bits crumbled away, revealing a large rounded cave entrance. Within it, a damp darkness could be seen along with a small five step staircase.

"There, it's do-" Deidara was cut off when he felt a harsh shove. He stumbled off to the side and snapped his head over his shoulder, viewing Kakuzu already start down the steps.

Hidan was immediately displeased with the behaviour of his partner and glared. "Hey!-"

_"Don't!"_ He elbowed he teenager harshly. Hidan attempted to ignore the blond and opened his mouth to protest further but nothing came out. He was silenced upon meeting a dark glare from the younger, which cautioned him to say nothing or face dire consequences. A tense aura surrounded him, almost choking.

Deidara mouthed a threat and turned to the entrance of his old summer getaway, following after the miser silently. Hidan watched from behind as a bead of sweat glistened over his temple. He never thought the little child could be...scary. On their trip back, he remembered him getting furious but never before was the imprudent zealot ever met with that look.

Inside the hideout, one could make out a round room in the low light. A work desk off to the side a shelf on the other side of the room. Deidara reached the bottom of the steps and instantly froze. He lifted his leg to view it, noting a puddle leaking down the steps on the floor. Curiously, he gazed over the old room, a stirring in his chest at the very sight of the sparse, dreary room.

_"Danna? What's that?" The child just barely peered over the top of the desk, observing his danna work diligently on a large diagram. His eyes were wide with wonder. This project was so much bigger looking than the other ones he'd seen. The other usually were regular sized papers, but this one almost seemed to span half a meter with each side._

_Sasori halted his pencil and looked up. "I'm working on a masterpiece." He smiled briefly and returned to his work, ignoring the look of dissatisfaction on the boy's face. The child pouted and hopped to get a glimpse at the new piece. He hopped again to see the arm and once more for the torso. As he grew more and more curious he got, the more he jumped, eventually trying to haul himself onto the desk to look at it more detail._

_Noticing this, the puppeteer raised a brow, the younger arms were straight on the desk, holding the rest of his body over the desk with legs dangling on the off. The redhead posed his question in a resigned voice. "What are you doing?"_

_Deidara blinked. "I'm looking."_

_The puppeteer frowned and shook his head. "Get down kid."_

_Deidara copied his expression and swung himself off the desk. Just then, Tobi entered the room and looked at the two. He walked over to the child and leaned down, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Hey, let's go outside. Sasori is busy."_

_"Why?" The blond whined but his question was soon answered. Tobi nodded towards the puppeteer, gesturing for the child to follow his gaze._

_"It's a very important project. He will need every second he can get this summer. That's why we came all the way out here." Tobi whispered, hoping to sway the boy._

_Deidara wasn't so easily convinced, jutting out his lower lip in a pout and glared mildly at the puppeteer. "What's so special about it?"_

_"Well, he's been planning for it before you came." The masked man kept his voice low as not to disturb the redhead. He paused for a moment, considering if he should continue or not. "He doesn't want to miss the chance to finish it. You see, Sasori will be going on a trip for a little while."_

_The child's face lit up with excitement and he jumped slightly."Are we going someplace cool!?"_

_"Ah, only Sasori." Tobi lifted a finger hesitantly, indicating the trip was for one person and one person only. "Meanwhile, we'll be staying here, and we can play together without the old grouch on our backs!"_

Their summer getaway. Back then, Sasori had told Deidara that they would be leaving the Ame tower for his own place in the Land of Rivers. He thought fondly upon those days, when him and the puppeteer had gotten a little closer. He wasn't sure why, but he thought it was because the redhead realized something, what it was however would remain in the dark for the coming couple of years.

Just standing here at the entrance, gazing over what used to look so spacious to him, Deidara had grown and the room seemed smaller. Instead of cleaned floors, they were a bit muddy and pooled in water from the fall rain. Drops of water echoed throughout the empty room. Even as Kakuzu searched it for the items the puppeteer asked for originally, Deidara felt as if he'd just come back to the past.

The boy felt as if the room had aged as much as he did, just not for the better. Even as Kakuzu was rummaging through Sasori's drawers and digging through his leftover supplies without any respect for his tools, Deidara felt nothing. This place held no significance to him anymore. Maybe at some point it did, but now, even as the room was practically destroyed, he almost thought it was joy he felt that the former beauty of it in his memories hadn't faded in the slightest. This hideout had crumbled under the forces of nature, but the boy didn't mind. No doubt since Sasori predicted that the trap would malfunction, he also knew this place might suffer the same treatment. They would not be coming here anymore.

* * *

"What's up with him?" Hidan grumbled and paced circles in the field. He kicked over a puppet torso in boredom, not too interested with going inside.

That kid. Acting all nervous and hostile all of sudden, it wasn't as if he hadn't acted that way before but this was serious. From what he could glean, it was because of Kakuzu, and Hidan didn't understand that. So what? The miser was a bit scary, but the guy wasn't anything to be feared to that extent. Perhaps it was because the boy was mortal. After some thought, he had remembered that the old crouched man had acted the same, stiff.

He expected so much more from these guys. Yet he was, disappointed. As it seemed, no matter where he went, people were scared to get a little dirty. Avoiding conflict, choosing to flee instead of fight, cowardice seemed to be a widespread disease. Fear, so much, fear, it made Hidan sick. It was even worse that Kakuzu held him back so much. He only had a week to go before his time was up and he'd be back to his old vulnerable self.

Hidan held up his pendant to view, a fogged over decorated in water beads, the mist seemed to dampen its shine. Jashin was still watching over him, waiting for him to fulfill his trial of blood. Hidan didn't care for numbers, he didn't memorize how much he needed to kill in order to retain his immortality. The sacrifice of his comrades was necessary. Hidan wasn't fond of killing priests but in order to carry out his holy deed, the Jashinists who followed behind him handed over their lives in order to give Hidan this temporary invincibility. Now he needed to kill, to kill and often as possible. If he were to make his immortality permanent, he'd need to sacrifice as many as possible.

The teenager pressed his mouth in a thin line and quickly made his way over to the entrance, peering down the steps to see the other two, their backs turned. Hidan felt a rush of adrenaline, the sudden urge to bolt as quickly as possibly. Now was his chance, he could get out of this weird group and complete his task.

He took a few silent steps back, careful not to overturn any more puppet parts and gazed over the trees. First order of business, getting his scythe back. Hidan swallowed his breath and crept over to the trees, then slipped away as quickly as he could.

Up above, Tobi watched with arms crossed, allowing the zealot dart beneath his feet in the shrubbery below. He barely reacted to the Akatsuki's newest member making a break for it, simply standing as if everything was already in place. A spot on the next tree trunk seemed to move, a bump wriggling out before it formed into two sides of a fly trap. Zetsu separated his two halves and stretched his amused grin. "_**He's a feisty one**. Hehehe_."

* * *

_Hsss..._

So this was what the outside was like? Certainly much damper than its former home, filled with smells, fresh smells, not the strange chemical scent that flooded its tongue in that small dark box. It was so cold here too, so wet. The snake felt as if its body would go numb any minute now, but it could stop. It needed to get to somewhere safe, somewhere warm.

The mountains here were so thin and tall, each one seemingly metallic in texture but rusty. They dwarfed it in size by the thousands, perhaps millions. Even as the flocks of pigeons flew overhead, the tiny snake felt as if it had left the warm room for a much colder world. It looked up at the sky, then flickered its tongue. No use, just water. Perhaps if it went far enough, it would find the end to this cold harsh land. These strange tower-ish mountains, the scent of rust, metal, and water. It was raining terribly too, making the puddles so deep, the snake was forced to swim, something it hadn't practiced since it hatched out of the egg.

Suddenly, it heard another hiss from the side. It looked over at the strange creature, then noticed as it slithered out that was another snake but off a large size, a dark green one covered in black splotches. The snake hissed aggressively and before it could do anything, the stranger dove in, fangs raised.

In response, it bore its own teeth but was no match for the sheer size and strength of the older snake. The two tussled for a few seconds before the snake was finally pinned, its neck bitten harshly by the other snake, holding it down painfully.

"What do we have here?" Sudden, a cold hand reached down and pulled the snake from the grasps of the other strange serpent. The striped snake curled and whipped out, fighting the human from handling it.

A pale man with long dark hair stared at it through disturbingly familiar eyes. The snake flickered its tongue, noting that it had smelled this scent before, it knew this man. The human made a throaty laugh and mused at the sight of this one. This snake was not of his own. "Ah yes, I do remember that Sasori owned a few. Of course, I thought he got rid of them all. I guess he kept one..."

Orochimaru smirked and lifted the snake in the air to take a good look at it. He ignored the serpent's wriggling, its fruitless attempts to bite him and inject poison into his wrist. Even as the puncture wounds from its fangs sent a drop of blood trickling down his arm, he did not shiver in fear. "This one will have valuable information."

* * *

"I-is everything okay?" Itachi gulped, noting to himself how just a few moments ago, the puppeteer seemed so flustered over the idea that art could fleeting, only to return to his normal composure.

"Yeah." Sasori answered in a resigned tone. He walked over to the door and switched off the light, bringing the shadows back into the room as opposed to the brighter mood. He visibly relaxed with the darkness, gazing about the studio before heading over to the desk. Items were slightly moved, changed in a different spots since they had to clean up but he could deal with it. He leaned over the desk and propped up both arms on it. He peered over his shoulder at Itachi, noting that the boy had saw his project, but no significant reaction came.

Sasori's eye narrowed slightly, a certain wariness in them. He turned back to his work. "I will talk to Deidara about this later."

Itachi hopped off the chair and took a few hurried steps forward. "Why? What's wrong with what he said?"

"Everything, everything about it!" Sasori snarled and whirled around, causing the boy to recoil in shock. Immediately, the puppeteer rid of his angered expression and lifted a hand over the right of his face to calm down. He almost appeared to sigh slightly in the low-light of the lamp, eyes closed and returning to his lidded gaze.

The boy didn't dare blink, an arm raised slightly, ready to defend himself in the case that the redhead would attack. His heart hammered against his chest, glistening sweat trickling down his temple. Itachi had never seen nor felt Sasori like this before, this weird tenseness in the air. Before, the puppeteer seemed like such a mentor like figure, calm, restrained, forgiving. Now he was snappy, easily pissed off, and certainly not one to take opposition lightly. This didn't look like the Sasori he knew, not the one that he remembered scolding Deidara every now and then for showing rudeness when it wasn't appropriate. This man was completely cold.

Itachi could barely read Sasori anymore. His stone-face and marble orbs didn't reflect that of a human-being, but a statue, a moving one. This stranger, who was this stranger standing right in front of him? Itachi felt a slight panic rise. Had he angered the puppeteer somehow?

"Damn." Sasori let his hand hand fall slightly, his other eye peering between his fingers. An almost scary keenness showing in them, a gleam that the Uchiha couldn't figure out. "Everything." He paused.

Itachi blinked in recognition. Taking the small action as an answer, the puppeteer continued. "You're a very polite boy, don't mistake me. I think you're skilled, competent, clever, all the traits that would make a full member of the Akatsuki, skills Deidara don't always demonstrate. I have nothing against you, but I don't consider you an artist."

He frowned slightly. "Therefore, since you are not an artist, there's nothing I can explain to you. Everything is wrong with that statement, but it isn't something you could possibly comprehend."

His voice seemed strained as he spoke, almost as if he were trying to hold something back. He calmed again and took a moment of silence. "I'm sorry, can you continue with how the brat's doing?" Sasori's gaze fell to the floor. "I'm...scared for him."

* * *

_"Don't leave! No!"_

_"Deidara, let go of his robe." Tobi pleaded, pulling mildly at the boy's shoulders but the child ignored him, continuing to cling to the puppeteer's leg like a lifeline._

_Sasori stared downwards, knitting his eyebrows in confusion. His subordinate was wrapped around his leg, holding on tightly as the younger buried his face into the back of his cloak, tears streaming. Even as the masked man continuously tried to pry the boy from him, it seemed to be a lost cause. Deidara wasn't going anywhere, and while he wasn't, Sasori couldn't either. He was dead set on making sure the boy stayed here while he was out. Just because he picked up a little student on his missions didn't mean that he would stop working on his projects. They were always priority number one._

_"Danna! I wanna go with you! Let me come!" Deidara cried in his cloak, unable to cope with the idea that for the first time in a few months, he would be separated from the puppeteer._

_Perhaps he didn't get it. Yeah, that was probably it. Sasori seemed to sigh and knelt down, causing Tobi to back up slightly and allow the other some space. The redhead gently pried the child off his leg and rested both hands on his shoulders, looking at the red-faced blond in the eye. "Deidara, I'm only going to be leaving for two weeks. If I'm lucky, I'll even be back in one week. I'm not leaving you, I would never leave you."_

_"Yes you are!"_

_Sasori's eyes widened as the child lunged forward and wrapped his arms around his neck, sniffling into his chest due to his short stature. "Every time you leave, someone scary comes. I don't wanna be alone!"_

_He looked at the child's back, then gazed up at Tobi only to receive a shrug in reply. The puppeteer was slightly astonished, listening more than he'd like to as the boy spilled all of his lonely worries onto him. "No, I'm not. I'm strong, I can make it back. Nothing's going to happen to you and nothing's going to happen to me."_

The bag was slung over the miser's shoulder. Kakuzu checked over a paper list of the items he was told to bring and slid the last drawer of the desk closed. Straightening his position, he slipped the list into his pocket and fished out a pocket-watch, determining the time. Kakuzu furrowed his eyebrows and huffed as he put it away, glaring off past the child at the entrance by the corner of his eye. It's already sunset.

"You." Kakuzu called, jolting the blond to attention.

Fear sprang up in the child's expression, momentarily flinching as Deidara almost trembled to look up at the old man. "Y-yes?"

Kakuzu scoffed at the boy's reaction. Typical of this generation, scared of every single thing and couldn't bare to look any man in the eye. This generation, they were either as rude and entitled as Hidan or as sheepish and hesitant as Deidara. That Uchiha boy could be either one, but the child had mastered the look of neutrality to hide his true face.

The man turned to the child and approached the exit. The blond sidestepped him and allowed the miser to start up the stairs. "I'm going. Stick around or go home, I don't care. Just don't get in my way." Kakuzu paused and turned just enough for the boy catch a glimpse of the dangerous glint in his eyes. "Don't think that just because Sasori said anything about you being protected means I can't find other ways."

Deidara pressed his lips together and gulped, giving a slight nod. Kakuzu broke away his gaze and headed out, little child in toe as the two emerged outside from the hideout.

The first thing that the eleven-year old heard once he came out was the strange mix of grumbling and humming that the Akatsuki member was capable of. Green eyes darted over the clearing, then turned to spy out the nearby trees even as the darkness began to settle, the sky turning a colour of what was supposed to be a calming hue of orange.

"Where's Hidan?"

* * *

**A/N: Sooo, sorry for the lack of updates. I've been trying to get windows 10 to upgrade on my PC but it's proven to be a bit...destructive. I've spent quite a few weeks with my dad to try and fix all the problems it caused and the problems that occur after those problems were fixed. It should have worked smoothly but my computer is a bit problematic compared to the other ones. I haven't been able to write in the meanwhile.**

**Anyway! Thank you for reading! I've been working on this arc for a bit and we're going to finally get going here! From here, we'll finally be able to be on our way to be wrapping up part 2 of this fanfiction and make way for the short and final part 3. I've got the ending all planned out, so I'll just write my way there. **

**Nice to meet ya! Review if you'd like!**


	55. Monsters on the Horizon

**Monsters on the Horizon**

She wasn't the one who received the final word on many things. That would have been Nagato's job, or by extension, Madara Uchiha. Konan was simply the one who carried out their dirty work, or whatever the Akatsuki leader was unable of doing himself. From there, she had another duty, keeping the members of the organization in check. Making sure they were doing their jobs, making sure they were relatively content in their positions. Konan never expected the members who joined to love their careers, or even to immerse themselves in it. More than usual, they hated it, and would lunge at freedom at the very first chance. No one was truly happy in the Akatsuki, though it had its perks.

So often the only chance she got to check up on their members were usually during real physical meetings or when they would stay at the tower in preparation for their missions. Konan was no social butterfly, but the Akatsuki members had always had to get used to their lives being probed every now and then. Mark her words though, she very rarely got even close to be friends with any of them.

At the moment, Konan had quite the opportunity to check in with the others. With winter fast approaching, it seemed this current generation of members had decided to stick by the tower in wait for missions.

As she strolled down the empty corridor, she could already spy the cold rust on the pipes lining the ceiling, the empty drips echoing through the hall and the quiet scuttle of the rats by the next turn. Konan passed the dark empty rooms without so much as a glance, much to eager to get her job over with. She'd already checked in with Kisame's floor, the humid one which stank more of the winter cold than the other floors. Konan had observed that with each member who would come, they all claimed their own sort of territory. A floor would be reserved for them and they alone would rule that turf. Luckily for her, Kisame was relatively friendly for a rogue ninja. He wasn't very pushy nor was he aloof. When she came by, the shark greeted her with a wondering grin and she had quite a pleasant conversation with him about his early return from his errands.

But that was where the good part ended. Konan pursed her lips slightly as she caught sight of the stone stairs to the next floor above just at the end of the hall. A slight churning twisted her stomach at the thought that drifted into her mind.

During her talk, she had wondered about Itachi's condition. Kisame had little good news to give her, claiming that though Sasori's medicine worked just as intended, he could see the boy only getting a few short hours of relief before the coughing fits threatened to emerge. Kisame expressed some worry for his partner as well of the future of their two-man team. Like this, he wondered if they could go on the way they had. Kisame was shaky on how Itachi would cope with the disease, and whether or not it was merciful to put him out of his misery.

Konan had told him it was too early to make any predictions like that, though, she wasn't quite sure about Itachi's potential either. Konan knew she had to take into account the boy's will to live. At the very mention he could post-phone his death, the child was immediately clinging to the idea. How desperately Itachi strained his voice to ask her but the very pressure itself brought him to another coughing fit.

When she asked where Itachi was at the moment, Kisame said he wasn't on the floor. More than likely, he'd either gone out or went to visit Deidara. The swordsman claimed that the boy had been rather talkative about the subject of going to visit him on Sasori's floor. He said he didn't really comment on it or tell him not to go, since he really didn't want to appear to be ordering him around like a parent or guardian. Kisame claimed he had no real experience with kids, so he just tried to think of it like some sort of hangout or play date, not that he knew much about those things either.

On the subject of Sasori...

Konan stared up the flight of steps to the floor above. She placed a hand on the pipes lining the wall next to the stairs, serving as a sort of railing. Her fingers curled away from the metal surface, already shivering slightly due to the cold exterior. Konan glanced at the railing and wondered briefly if winter would be arriving early. Perhaps this would be one of the few years they would receive snow and not rain.

The Akatsuki finally started up the steps and emerged on the next floor. Immediately, she felt the need to call out as she took a quick gander around the hall. "Itachi? Deidara?"

She waited for a full minute, standing at the entrance wondering if she'd receive any responses. Konan spared another wary glance over the familiar passage, then continued on her way to the workshop, the puppeteer's usual dwelling.

Turning a few forks in the path and making a few right turns, she finally recognized the burnt dust smell in the hallway, though less choking than usual. Konan strode out of a corner and gazed down the corridor she had walked down so many times before. Unlike the other members, Sasori stuck by the tower more regularly due to the abundance of his materials here. Of course, he had places like the Ink village to go to as well.

Konan took a breath and made her way down, finally arriving at the door to the puppeteer's workshop. She stood there thoughtlessly, then proceeded to grab the door knob and twist it open. With her status, she had no need to knock.

The door swung open fairly easily. Even as the years passed, Konan still found herself blinking in surprise whenever that happened. Before, Sasori always kept his door locked. It was a sign to others that he did not wish to be disturbed during his work. In particular, this floor used to be harder to access due to the traps that the puppeteer set up. Of course, that was before Sasori had brought that child back with him from that mission.

Konan stepped inside and was immediately blocked by someone. Caught off guard, she immediately stiffened and lowered her gaze as carefully as she could manage. Staring right back at her, she recognized the large black irises of Itachi wide with surprise. Itachi gulped and staggered back and bowed hastily, muttering an apology for blocking her path.

Her expression softened as she watched the young Uchiha remain that way for a few moments, then straighten again to look up at her with a child's eye. Itachi must have forgotten to keep up his calm and cool facade, for now he looked more like a kid than ever before.

"Hello Itachi, what are you doing here?" Konan smiled and tried to keep her tone pleasant as she walked forward into the room.

The first thing she noticed was the sudden freedom of her breathing. Upon gazing around the room, Konan ignored the sight of Sasori sitting by the work table to gawk at the transformation of the art studio. Usual overrun with mess and wood shavings, now the room was organized and spacious. The air was clean as well, and allowed her relax more than usual in here.

_This is novel..._Konan blinked as she heard Itachi say something that she didn't quite catch. Turning down to look at the younger, she requested him to repeat his sentence.

"I'm just leaving but I came here to see Deidara. He's not here though." Itachi replied, nodding towards the room. "What are you doing here, Mrs. Konan?"

She sighed and closed the door behind her out of courtesy. "Please just address me as Konan. I'm here to check on both of you, see how you two are faring." She paused for a second, eyes narrowing slightly, "and what's this about Deidara not being here?"

* * *

"Itachi!"

The boy stopped in the middle of the street and raised his head to look around. He turned his head to the sky and spied out the cloudy sky just behind the towering buildings. Itachi blinked and finally looked in the direction of the voice. Just down a short alley, he could see the other street from here, a young familiar child waving to him from afar. The moment they met gazes, he could tell Deidara was assured he saw him. The blond ceased waving and ran over, a large smirk on his face.

Deidara stopped just a few meters from the other boy. Itachi took a few steps back, eyes slightly wide with surprise. The other child took a moment to double over and pant for a few seconds, tired from the long run across the region. Deidara looked up again and wiped his brow from sweat.

"Oh, um." The Uchiha tilted his head slightly, unsure of what to say. "Y-you're back."

"Hm?" Deidara finally straightened and staggered back slightly. His made a puzzled expression, looking at Itachi oddly, "How did you know I was gone?"

"I went to visit you but Sasori told me you were off somewhere else." _Why is he wearing that? _Itachi looked at the other from head to toe, noting the large cloak that Deidara wore, similar to the kind he knew of the ANBU in his former village to don. "I wanted to apologize about what I told you."

"Told me what?" Deidara blanked.

_Does he not remember?_ Itachi pressed his lips together and quickly snapped his head to look elsewhere. "N-nothing, nevermind."

The child squinted his eyes at him suspiciously for a full minute, wondering if he should push the Uchiha into telling. "Anyway!" His face brightened immediately. "I just got back from a assignment! I did all by myself!"

"That's...nice." Itachi blinked cluelessly.

Deidara's prideful grin fell, replaced by a shrewd expression. The boy scrunched up his nose is distaste and became hostile, backing up a few steps. "Nice? Just nice?"

The Uchiha stared at him, then quickly shook his head and tried to change the subject by bringing up a forced grin. "W-well, I've been sticking around for a bit while you were gone. Kisame tells me we should go south in a couple of days, winter's coming you know."

The blond squinted for the last time and decided to discard his fowl attitude to play along. He crossed his arms. "I get that. Danna hasn't told me if we're going too." He tilted his head up towards the sky as if to inspect it for snowflakes. "They say this year is supposed to be a pretty bad."

Suddenly, he spied something dark and black flit across his vision, a seemingly large creature streaking across the metallic towers. The boy made a grunt of surprise, and blinked, then began to scan the sky to catch another glimpse of it. Unable to locate it, the child felt a swelling rise up his chest as he furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. _What was that?_

"Cold bad?" Itachi asked.

Deidara turned back to him and noticed Itachi's rather neutral expression, realizing that he was oblivious to the creature that just shot through the air above them. "U-un." He paused for a moment, then had a thought. "Oh, did you stay at Danna's for long?"

"For a while, yes." Itachi decided not to mention his little 'accident' in the storage room. He wasn't in the mood to deal with any mockery. "He started asking me about how you were doing. This should prove now that he's just busy, he really does care about you."

"Well I never doubted that!" The blond snapped half-heartedly and looked away. His blue eye slowly moved to peek at the older boy from the corner of his vision."So...what did you tell him?" Deidara asked evasively, a bit curious about what the Uchiha had been saying behind his back, but he didn't want to seem nosey.

Itachi ignored the gesture, knowing full well of Deidara's admiration for Sasori. "I told him mainly about your art. What your views were and such."

He watched the younger make a slight grunt in surprise. The raven expected the boy to be more ecstatic about that fact but as it seemed, the blond wasn't as set as he thought he was to reveal his beliefs to the puppeteer.

"Did you? What'd he say?" Deidara frowned, narrowing his gaze quickly.

"He..." Itachi's lips fell into a thin line, eyes dropping to the floor nervously. The puddles on the cracked concrete suddenly seemed intensely fascinating.

Deidara knitted his eyebrows curiously, then leaned in, wondering what kind of reaction would have cornered the infamous young rogue to silence. "What? He said what?"

"I FOUND YOU!"

* * *

A path of destruction. The hall was a mess of traps, seals torn to shreds, wire strings stretched so taught that some of them snapped and hung limp from the ceiling. There was a pile of rubble by the entrance where the door should have been, now nothing but a large gaping hole in the building. Inside, one could smell smoke wafting off the singed candle lying on top of the rubble, filling the room with a choking incense.

Hidan stood at the end of the room, the corner of his brow dripping with a red liquid and just sliding past the wide grin on his face. His eyes were wide with excitement as he knelt down and grabbed his triple-bladed scythe off of the floor, the polished metal glaring off the light form the outside.

"Now to finish the job."

* * *

_(Naruto Shippuden Movie 5 OST Track 23 - The Mask)_

A loud boom sounded in the sky, thunder crashing and the faint white sound in the distance signalling the coming rainfall. The world seemed to change for a brief quarter of a second, dark shadows flashing across the city of towers while sharp lights countering them. Itachi stared with his eyes wide, breath hitching at the sight before him.

Deidara barely regarded the thunder. Instead, he eyed Tobi doubled over and panting in the alleyway from the corner of his eye, lidded with disdain. He considered himself pretty independent now, he trained on his own, now did small assignments on his own, surely he didn't need Tobi looking after him anymore. He placed a hand on his hip in a superior manner, obviously annoyed by the masked man's appearance. "What do you want Tobi? I'm talking here!"

The rush of rain seemed to arrive, a blanket of water droplets pouring onto the village. Even when the cold droplets hit Itachi's face, he refused to pay attention, still breathless at the sight, a clear memory from the back of his mind immediately running through his head. A memory of life, a memory of blood.

Tobi's spiky hair dampened slightly in the rain, the dark hole in his eye still too pitch to glean anything at all from his real face. Tobi raised his head and straightened, immediately jolting into a dramatic position, almost as if he were readying to fight. His head frantically looked from place to place. "You guys have to follow me! It's not safe here!"

"Safe?" Deidara spat, "Tobi, what are you talking about, this is Ame. Leader's keeping an eye on everything!"

All three jumped slightly as a loud screech tore across the atmosphere. Deidara blinked a couple of times, heart thumping rapidly at the booming sound. Immediately, he turned to Tobi to demand what that sound was but the elder beat him to say anything.

The next thing he knew, he was thrown against the wall next to the alleyway. The back of his head hit the metal and his mind spun in complete confusion and shock. Itachi watched as Deidara quickly shrunk to the ground and grabbed his aching head, groaning slightly in pain. Tobi shushed them, back pressed to the wall. He turned away from the children to his right and inched towards the alleyway, peering into the neighbouring street.

Itachi followed him, chancing his way past Deidara and Tobi to look down the same way. Immediately, a strange creature darted into sight and halted, giving him a good view of its strange body. It was a dark black creature, slightly bigger than a large horse. It crawled on all fours, white masked face seemingly sniffing the ground and making those screeching noises as it did so. It's mouth resembled something of a beak drawn onto the mask, light blue marks underneath it's round empty eyes. Its body seemed to be made of some stringy material, almost appearing like long fur. The creature reared up and revealed it's long bulky arms, using its superior height to scan the area.

"What_ is_ that?" Tobi heard Deidara whispered much too loudly for his liking, quickly noticing that Deidara had also peered out to see it.

The creature suddenly made a loud screech, having heard him. Deidara froze upon realizing his mistake but luckily for them, the animal was distracted as similar looking creature of larger size zoomed past the street. A gust of wind followed, sending a sheet of trash paper into the original creature's mask. Irritated, it bellowed another roar and shook the paper off of its mask before looking in the direction the other creature went, screeching again before darting off.

Tobi held out his arm to signal the two children to hold their breaths a little longer before a whole 20 seconds passed when he lowered it.

Itachi let out a big exhale while Deidara merely staggered back, eyes wide. "H-hey answer me Tobi, what is that thing?"

"Not now, we need to get somewhere safe." Tobi shook his head, speaking in a hissed tone. He turned to Itachi, who simply stared back with a steely look. "No way, Itachi too? I've heard about you, you're that prodigy member that everyone's talking about!" He pointed at him.

Deidara grumbled at the title.

Itachi didn't reply immediately, instead taking a moment before asking in a monotonous tone. "And you are?"

"Tobi." Deidara groused and nodded towards the ecstatic adult. "He's the babysitter I told you about."

_No point in that. I already know who he is._ Itachi narrowed his gaze slightly, but decided to play along when he considered the blond's point of view. "I see."

Zetsu's subordinate stood straight and walked ahead of them abruptly, stopping with his back turned and whirled around, one hand on his hip and the other jutting his thumb out in another direction. Deidara groaned exasperatedly at his antics but Tobi seemed to ignore him.

"Well! I'll get your autograph later! I'll tell you what's happening on the way!"

* * *

The market place had been buzzing a bit more recently, shelves lined with apples and grapes along with dried out fish and other assortments of food. Konan walked her way through the crowd, a good foot of space spreading out before her as her status had made her citizens make way. The good people of Ame backed away and bowed in her presence, addressing her as the lady angel of the village.

Konan acknowledged them with glances but she wasn't in the talkative mood. It wasn't very often she came down to stroll amongst the regular citizens, so she wasn't surprised when she was met with looks of shock and surprise followed by loud greetings and offerings to her and the current governor of the area, Pein.

She wasn't concerned too much with the village at the moment, mind still on the subject of Sasori's strangely secretive behaviour. He acted like that all the time of course, but this time, she had a sinking feeling that this project was different from the others. Not only that, but Konan also had the hunch that she knew exactly what he was planning to do.

"Mom! Mom! Is that her?"

Konan paused and looked to her left, noticing a older woman lean down and shush a young boy. For a moment, she was reminded of Deidara as the kid seemed to be around his age. Actually, that child reminded her of many like him, though less fortunate.

"Yes dear, now please be more respectful of Lady Angel." The middle-aged woman was slightly chubby, pressing a finger to his lips in a silent signal. When she looked up, her eyes widened momentarily to see Konan stand before her, looking down directly at them.

Konan smiled softly. "Are you his mother?"

"Lady Angel! Oh! No! No! I'm his nanny!" The woman pressed a hand to her chest and made a proud expression. "His parents are out at work right now, but I can't wait to tell them that their son has met you. We are truly blessed by your presence."

"I see a good future for him, will he be a prospective ninja?" Konan asked curiously.

"He was," The nanny paused, her smile melting into a thin line. "His older brother was a ninja you see, but he was killed in the line of duty." Her eyes lowered to the child beside her, head also bowed in grief. "His parents don't want him to follow the same path, so we're looking at a different career."

Konan considered encouraging the nanny to bring the boy to the ninja academy but for some reason, those weren't the words that left her mouth. "Perhaps that's best." She looked the lady in the eye. "If I may ask, what was the name of his older brother?"

The woman opened her mouth to reply but before any of that, a loud screech emitted in the distance. Konan quickly came to attention and looked up, noticing the people all looking behind them, a frantic stirring in the crowd as there seemed to be a wave of shoving. A dark black creature came from the skies and landed on a hapless apple stand, crushing the fruit and the wood beneath its clawed feet as frightened screams and yells emerged from the crowd. The creature flapped its disproportionately small webbed fly wings and jumped onto the puddled street, the intense rain following shortly after its arrival to pelt the area.

Konan watched in shock as chaos exploded in the area, the creature running rampage through the citizens, seemingly confused and enraged. The animal threatened the people, looking as if it were searching through them, inspecting each and and every nook and cranny on the street. For moment, it stared a man in the face on the ground, then screeched loudly and turned its attentions to another.

She ran to approach the creature but the animal simply hissed at the sight of her. Konan prepared to restrain it with her paper jutsu but the creature backed away and lifted its wings, flapping them once and it was in the air. She could only watch as the animal retreated down the street, disappearing as it turned a corner, leaving the area in ruins.

The female Akatsuki stood there amongst the panic, staring as if the creature where still flying down the road. Of course she knew what it was, but the question was, what was it doing here?

* * *

"They're part of Kakuzu's jutsu." Tobi began to explain, nodding out the gap between the planks of wood in the abandoned tower.

A faint light streaked out from the gap and hit the faces of both Itachi and Deidara, having followed the older ninja into the wrecked area where the creatures seemed disenterested in exploring. From here, Deidara could see two creatures circling the skies, both black bodied and furry looking. One had pronounced shoulders and no wings to speak of, crackling bits of electricity around its head, only seconds after, thunder streaking the sky above it. The other was a smaller and bulkier animal, webbed fly wings keeping itself aloft.

Itachi blinked. "Summonings?"

Deidara made a sound of agreement, suddenly excited at the thought that such awesome creatures could be summoned. They seemed much more useful than Aoda any day. Not only that, but he could tell by the sudden movement of his palms that they seemed quite interested for the first time in months.

"No, they're not, they're not as sentient as they seem-" Tobi ducked quickly as the winged creature glanced their way. He peeked again once its gaze moved back to the area below. He passed a hand over his mask as if to wipe away a bead of sweat. "Phew! That was close! Anyway, they're like your jutsu Deidara."

"My jutsu?" Deidara furrowed an eyebrow.

"Your hand mouths, they're something like them." Tobi noticed Itachi look over curiously, staring at the lolling tongues of the other child's hand. He continued, "Kakuzu's jutsu is basically the same concept, but only in a sense. It was derived in Takigakure, they're own forbidden jutsu, just like yours. It's hard to explain, but it's something like chakra threads in a way, but they can sew up wounds and reattach limbs. When someone looses a limb, sometimes they get them reattached in surgery. That's what Kakuzu can do infinitely and far quicker with his jutsu. I'm sure you've heard form Sasori, about his many hearts."

Both children looked at him blankly. Tobi copied them, then realized when it clicked that neither of them had heard. Immediately, he grabbed both sides of his head and doubled over in frustration. "Ugh! What are Sasori and Kisame even teaching you two? Do they tell you anything!?" He childishly complained and hung his arms wearily. "Fine! I'll explain, but you better listen to me while I can!" He pointed at Itachi accusingly. "Even you mister Uchiha! You may be an akatsuki, but you're looking at your future-coworker!"

Itachi didn't react, continuing to stare expectantly at the other.

"Get on with it Tobi, I don't have all day." Deidara deadpanned.

Tobi staggered back in surprise, holding his arms up in a comical pose. "If Sasori had taught you anything, it's to be cranky!"

Deidara stomped and made a threatening grunt.

"Okay! Okay! Let me talk!" The masked man sighed and leaned against the wall, crossing his arms. "Kakuzu has extra organs in his body. Those organs are four extra hearts next to his own aged one. They're the reason that he's been able to live so long, since he's fooling his body into thinking he's young with new blood running through his veins." Tobi hummed and tapped his chin. "Mr. Zetsu explained this to me so don't expect me to know everything about him. Those hearts of his store different kinds of chakra. Kakuzu is the only living shinobi the Akatsuki knows of to possess five chakra elements."

"Five!?" Deidara exclaimed, the fact also serving to widen Itachi's eyes.

"That's right, other than his original earth style, he has water, fire, wind, and lightening up his sleeve. Those hearts of his control his jutsu and they can live as separate entities from Kakuzu, of course, they're still controlled by him." Tobi gestured out the boarded window, the creatures now slightly further away but continue to circle the skies. "I'll just warn you, those hearts are usually in a bad mood. They act Kakuzu's will, so they're not friendly.

"But why are they released?" Itachi proposed carefully.

"I don't know for sure, but I heard from Mr. Zetsu that Kakuzu's searching for someone. Who it would be, I don't really know. It's probably a bounty though." He shrugged.

Deidara bit his lip and looked at the two. He contemplated confessing as to knowing who the miser was looking for, but he wasn't sure how they would react. After a full minute of watching the creatures zoom across the sky, Deidara decided finally to spill.

"They're looking for Hidan."

Itachi and Tobi snapped their attentions to the youngest in the room. Deidara looked on bravely. "I was sent by Sasori no danna to assist or stop Kakuzu's team from springing his traps by our old summer hideout. During then, Hidan was waiting outside and I was too distracted to notice him sneak away." The blond's eyes fell to the floor fearfully. "He's angry at me, I know it. I didn't realize until it was too late." He lifted his gaze again. "I don't know why he's looking here in Amegakure though."

"Well, there's not much we can do about that." Tobi followed his gaze out the window. "But for now, while the search is going on, we should stick together." He made a thumbs up. "Got it, _team_?"

Itachi was slightly irked by his actions but simply nodded. Deidara however was quick to become disgusted by the cliche title and looked at the other child with dread, unable to think of working with the Uchiha again. They did relatively fine last time, but both Itachi and Tobi sounded like a horrible idea.

* * *

**A/N: I expect to see some Sasodei in episode 457. My friend somehow ships Itachi and Juzo, I'm okay with Juzo, I can imagine it a bit more than Kisame. Even then, I barley ship Itachi with anyone. **

**Moving into the new arc, we'll be focusing back on Deidara and Sasori very soon. I'm still dropping hints to foreshadow the final arc of this part as usual. Tobi's pretty knowledgeable for a quack eh?**

**Thanks for Reading! Please review if you'd like! Nice to meet you all!**


	56. A World Beyond the Story

**A World Beyond the Story**

Tobi appeared in the clearing and scanned the rainy area warily. He glanced up at the far-reaching edges of Pein's tower, the area where the Akatsuki were permitted to stay with permission. In his case, he had his own permission to stay here for as long as he liked, but for the two children currently waiting in the shadows for the green light, it was a bit more complicated.

"Alright, no heart monsters in sight." Tobi whispered to himself, one hand shielding his eye hole from the rain as he made one last check. Finally, he raised his other hand and beckoned.

No sooner than he had, Deidara eagerly jumped down onto the street, hood up to protect him from the heavy rain. Itachi followed in suite, both looking at Tobi expectantly. From here in this area a grassless courtyard was visible surrounding the building. Nothing but wet mud and spiked fences separated the tower from the others around it. Civilians weren't allowed inside the premises.

Deidara took the liberty of looking around himself, his eye particularly sharper than they had been years ago. He heard a slight cough and glanced over at Itachi, noticing the Uchiha had his arm raised to his mouth, eyes closed with eyebrows slightly furrowed as he tried to hide his fit. The blond decided not to comment and continued to eye him from the corner of his vision. _Be glad you didn't rat us out with your coughs._ Deidara huffed in his mind, but he felt a bit guilty at the same time. Itachi couldn't control his hacking fits, so it wasn't as if the blond had any place to be telling him when or where he could cough.

Tobi looked at the two children, water droplets glistened over his mask, expression hidden. He was surprised that it was so easy to get these two to listen to him. Then again, it was always an instinct for a child to listen to their elders. Tobi thought that his rookie status and incompetent behaviour would have lost any trust he'd have in Deidara's eyes. Itachi was a different story of course.

Picking up his act, Tobi fist pumped. "We've gotten this far, but we're still not at Leader's tower yet!" He gained the attention of both youths. "Do you where this place is? Have you been here before?"

Deidara took his words as a cue to look around. Doing so, the child noticed that the area was strangely isolated, the beginnings of the next street and tower yards away from their place. In Amegakure, everything was packed so closely together, he didn't think that such open space was anywhere within the village. They stood on a damp sidewalk next what looked like a dead garden just next to the three meter wire fence. Deidara could also see a stairwell nearby from the second floor hanging off the side of the tower.

Itachi followed Deidara's gaze, then began to wonder himself where Tobi had lead them. Whether he was asking a serious question or it was a simple 'fun fact' kind of thing, he was also curious.

"This is near Leader's morgue." Tobi finally revealed, eager to gauge the expressions of the children. "You know what that is?"

Deidara opened his mouth to ask but Itachi beat him to the answer.

"It's a place where bodies are kept."

"Excellent Itachi!" Tobi clapped proudly to the bomber's displeasure. "It's also restricted for anyone to be here!"

"EH!?" Deidara exclaimed, while the Uchiha's face paled slightly. The blond growled and quickly exploded and balled up his fist. "Tobi! Why'd you bring us here!? You're gonna get us in trouble!"

Tobi feigned fear by stumbling back at the boy's outburst, both hands posed in front his chest. "Hey! Hey! It was the faster route and besides! Wasn't it you who said rules meant nothing?"

"Why do you still remember what I said when I eight!?"

Itachi sighed and watched them bicker, frowning slightly. Of course, Tobi wouldn't get them in hot water unless it meant something beneficial turned out for the man himself. Chances were, the restriction on this property was conditional, either that or Tobi was outright lying. Not that he expected Deidara to be the kind of person that could catch his lies.

"If I get mauled to death because of those things, it'll hurt less than being punished by Leader!"

"Oh relax! It's not like anyone saw us!"

Tobi sighed and put a hand on Deidara's head, holding the child down as if he were suppressing the boy's anger level. "Just trust me okay? I've been here plenty of times before. This will be an _educational_ experience!"

"_Educational_ huh?" The boy grit his teeth and grabbed Tobi's wrist in attempt to yank it away but he was quickly turned down when he realized that Tobi's arm wouldn't budge. Yanking turned into punching and pretty soon, Deidara was an angry cat with the scruff of its neck pinched._ What is he? Made of stone!?_

"You're not the only trained ninja here Deidara." Tobi commented smoothly before turning to the older boy. "Itachi, let's go."

Itachi nodded and watched the older turned away from the subordinate to make his way for the stairwell going into the building. Deidara blinked and watched the two exit out of the courtyard, their dark clothing shinier underneath the dryness of the roof over their heads. Immediately, he felt the need to say something. "Hey! Where are you going?"

Only Tobi turned back, waving a hand dismissively at the blond. "We're gonna find a way out of course you dummy!"

Drenched in water, Deidara could only barely hear his babysitter through the pelting rain. He squinted slightly before responding. "Why can't we just get out the way we came in!?"

Itachi passed Tobi on the stairs, but the masked man didn't seem bothered. Tobi shifted his stance and gestured towards the back of the courtyard. "Well, we don't want to get caught now do we? This is the only way."

"Like hell this is the only way!" He swiped his hand through the air angrily. Deidara held up a fist, too tired from the travel back to Ame to think straight. "This is stupid!

"Such a foul mouth!" Tobi flinched dramatically. After a few seconds, he calmed and let both arms fall. "Okay Deidara, if that's what you think." He paused and then moved his gaze towards the wall and shrugged. "I'll just have to tell Sasori that you were too smart for me, so you decided to find your own way." Tobi sighed and turned back up the stairs with a brief wave, disappearing up the stairs. "Bye, bye, Deidara. I guess we'll be going our own ways."

For a moment, he felt like screaming at them but at the same time, a thought at the back of his mind kept him aware that doing so would not bode well. Left drenched, the child was left to stand alone, pelted by droplets of heavy rain as he stared at the steps of the well.

A loud shriek jump started the boy out of his trance, Deidara immediately directed his attention towards the sky as he viewed a dark creature perch itself on one of the radio poles jutting from the towers. Its mere weight bent the pole like a twig, eventually snapping it as the animal quickly flapped its webbed wings hastily to avoid plummeting to its death. Deidara stared from below, a wash of fear coming over him as he realized the dangers posed.

His thoughts went to Tobi but even as he turned to look, he realized too late that they'd already gone. Deidara pressed his lips together and tried to shake off the fear. He was fine on his own, no need to run to them for he-

_SCREECH_

...

He couldn't stand being alone much longer.

"Tobi! Wait! Itachi!"

* * *

"I thought you said you were fine with being on your own?" Tobi made the question as if he were mulling over it himself. This act of mockery sparked a silence in the boy, who simply decided not to add fuel to the fire the older was trying to light.

Itachi lagged slightly behind, watching them walk along a long narrow concrete ledge that spanned at least three or four meters. The area was drier than the rest of the property, covered mostly by a large overhanging roof quite a height above. On to their left was a tall chain link fence just reaching half way to the ceiling. On their right were big wooden crates, some of them open with bags containing unknown items or goods. Itachi gazed at the crates for a moment, then moved his view to the other side of the fence as he walked with the others.

They were fenced off from a large open area, several familiar black bags laid out in ordered rows, at least 20 a few feet apart from each other from the north to south of him. No one seemed to be tending to this area, leaving them out to brave the elements of rain, perhaps in waiting to be transported.

"Whatch'a lookin' at?" Tobi piped up, bringing Deidara's attention to Itachi. They stopped for a brief moment, the Uchiha's gaze never leaving the bodies.

The three took a gander at the scene before them, the same bags that Itachi had been pondering. Some crows had gathered at certain bodies, pecking at the cloth to try and get at the contents. Deidara kept his expression calm, not shocked at the sight of the area. He'd seen places like it many times in the Akatsuki.

"Hey! Hey! How about I start off with a guessing game?" Tobi clapped at the two, the opposite of enthusiasm in the childrens eyes.

_Here we go._ The blond sighed as Zetsu's subordinate didn't even let them answer his question, skipping straight to his inquiry. Itachi meanwhile was actually quite interested. He could go for anything that wasn't as grey and brooding in this dark place.

"Does anyone know what this place is called? I'll give you a hint: it starts with an 'M'!"

_M? _Itachi pondered the question, mentally skimming words from 'matter' to 'mud'. The word was at the tip of his tongue and yet he couldn't quite pin it. Meanwhile, it barely took a second for the younger boy to have his answer locked and ready.

"Morgue."

"Correct!" Tobi twirled on the spot dramatically. "I didn't think you knew this kind of stuff Deidara!"

The blond gave him a flat look, unable to take the masked man seriously. After years of these kinds of trivia questions at spontaneous times about the most random things ranging from, bugs, birds, lanterns, to geographical spots, maths, philosophy and the such. Deidara thought it strange at first that Tobi had the capacity to even think of such things, but then it became clear to him that the idiot was just dabbling random subjects into his questions. "You mentioned it before you dimwit."

A slightly confused sound caught Deidara's attention. He turned slightly and eyed Itachi, noting that he was the only other person save for Tobi to make that sound. He thought for a moment, then smirked at the chance to one-up the Uchiha. "You remember, right? Itachi?"

Itachi opened his mouth to reply that he'd had it to hide the bit of shame at the forgotten fact. His silence dragged on, voice caught as he was unable to think of an excuse. Wait, why did he need an excuse? Surely he didn't need show up Deidara, he was better than that.

Sensing the rising tension, Tobi tried to distract the boy. "You know! This place is Leader's Morgue." He pointed towards the yard, ignoring Deidara's remark about him being repetitive with his questions. "I'm not sure what those body bags are for specifically, but they're probably for ninja that died for this village."

A silence fell over the three, staring quietly at the morgue as the rain slammed the floor, coming down harder than before. The rusty pipes lining the roof shook and creaked at the heightened flow and finally broke, one section of the pipe separating in half and swinging down to hang off just a meter from the wire fence onto the floor below. Rain water rushed out of the pipe, splattering into a shallow puddle.

"Have you ever considered it? That this place was a ninja village too?" Tobi spoke calmly even as another screech from the terror in the skies echoed in the distance, bouncing off the hard surfaces of the concrete and steel. "It's not just the Akatsuki's main head quarters, this place has it's own history, particularly in times of war."

_Tobi._ Deidara blinked past the crossing wires and looked at the elder's twisting mask oddly. In such a grey place, the only colours that stood out was the bright orange of the mask, the light yellow of his hair, and the red on Itachi's cloak though they were all dulled in the shadows. A suspicion rose about the boy, who dared to ask, "How do you know that?"

Tobi giggled, the sound itself not too unfamiliar to Deidara but something about it was weird this time. "I think you forget your own age sometimes Deidara." Tobi wiggled his finger while clicking his tongue. "I may be 'stupid' as you say but I've been around for a while. Before either of you were born."

_He's sounds creepily competent._ Deidara turned to face the older fully. He took a momentary glance over at the other boy, Itachi stone-faced as usual. A faint emotion in his black irises caught his attention, not one of surprise or anything too shocking. To him though, the very idea that the Uchiha looked almost as if he expected to hear such words from the Akatsuki's unwanted tagalong sent a stirring about the blond.

There was something about these two. Something he wasn't part of.

No way, do they know each other? Deidara thought silently as he returned to Tobi, too busy rambling on about his so-called 'wisdom' that didn't seem to much like a farce at the moment.

"Just wait, you'll be able to see what the Akatsuki are truly for!" Tobi cheered and yet he sounded slightly disappointed. Another screech rang out but he didn't flinch. "Mr. Zetsu gets to see more than I do. He says that the nations are fighting, and will keep fighting. The more they do, the more morgues like this one will be created." Tobi propped both hands on his hip and let out a heavy sigh as he gazed out into the grey sky. "This country, do you know where it is on the map?"

Deidara had seen it before of course, but he never thought much of it. Sasori was always working, and thus he always had plans laid out for his next project, his next idea, his next destination. Sometimes a map would be taped to the wall with little pins placed to mark certain areas. Deidara sometimes watched him work when he had little else to do, and thus the puppeteer was able to teach him a few things about the world they lived in.

He remembered vaguely that Sasori first pointed out the Land of Fire, the big red nation. Sasori had told him of the people there, and how they were soft and gullible, the ninja naive and yet some did pose a bit of a threat. Deidara thought it was weird how Itachi had come from the nation and yet he didn't seem to demonstrate any of those qualities. Maybe a bit reckless and overly self-reliant, but he could never admit that the blond hated it when he didn't measure up to the Uchiha.

The second was the Land of Water, then the Land of Lightening, and the Land of Earth. Deidara didn't need to have much of an explanation for his own country, he knew it well enough, the very sight of it felt a bit nostalgic.

Sasori had left his own nation, the Land of Wind, last and barely talked about it. Deidara didn't care too much at the time, thinking that the puppeteer was just weary from a long day's work and didn't want to dwell too long on the lesson. Now however, he did remember it a bit strange how he left the subject of the Land of Wind so abruptly.

_"We're right here."_

_Courtesy of the lamp light, the map could easily be seen on the desk, rolled out with each corner held down by a paper weight. At 10:22 PM, one would expect the room to be dark, puppets hanging idly from the ceiling, still with no emotion. _

_ A finger pointed to a small country wedged between three other nations, two of which were the Land of Earth and the Land of Fire. Sasori hovered over the young boy's shoulder, giving a small lesson on the geography of the Shinobi Lands, vital information to anyone living here. Deidara took a moment to realize how small the country was, the Land of Rain as it was called by many he'd met, though it held no name on the map. _

_ They sat on a wooden chair, Deidara sitting idly on the puppeteer's lap. Sasori glanced at the boy to make sure he was paying attention before continuing in a cool tone. "It has no official name but we call the Land of Rain. This is a war-ravaged land. Because it's in the crossroads between the three nations, it became the natural battle field during the third war when Iwagakure and Konohagakure clashed."_

_ He could almost hear the cries and clangs, screeches and sparks of clashing blades and the shrill sound of flesh tearing. Deidara had never experienced war, but Onoki had been very vocal on educating him about it ever since he arrived at the Tsuchikage tower. He was never one for war-stories, they simply didn't interest him. Being born among the generation that had never known such a thing as national strife, it simply wasn't a part of his every day life. That war was just over ten years ago, and yet it was only now after three years of life as a rogue did the image of organized chaos flood into his mind. _

_ Deidara looked up and expected the redhead to say something else, but Sasori remained silent, waiting for the youngster to be done with his mulling. _

_ Without thinking about it, the boy turned back to the map and extended his arm out to a country south-west of Amegakure, coloured in a light beige. A stylized gourd in bold was stamped in the middle, signalling that this was the symbol of the ninja there. "What about this place?"_

_ Sasori turned his attention to the country, lidded eyes showing a single emotion:_

_ Indifference. _

_ Deidara retracted his arm and held on to the corner of the table, leaning back against the puppeteer's chest to stretch a little. Not a single word came from the other in that moment, but he did speak eventually._

_ "That is the Land of Wind." Sasori paused. "The people there are hardy and cruel, their government is vastly corrupt, especially among the village council comprised of scratchy old men and occasionally women." _

_ Deidara opened his mouth to mention that Sasori had come from the village, wondering if he had any stories to share. However, he was interrupted when he felt the legs beneath him shift, signalling the older was about to stand up. The boy hopped off rather clumsily, whirling around to see why the puppeteer had stood. Sasori kept his gaze on the boy while he pushed away the paper weights, folding up the map for use another day. "That's it, time for bed."_

_ "Wait! But dann-"_

_ "Bed time, now."_

Deidara was confident with his answer. "It's in the middle of bunch of other countries."

"Oh! Aren't we on a roll today! You never even answered these questions before!" Tobi clapped and cheered, seemingly oblivious of the deadpan boy. "Such a good thing I'm doing educating you! It's almost like Sasori forgot what was important in order to survive!"

_He taught me what I needed to know to answer your stupid question._ Deidara contemplated firing back but then decided that starting now would lead to an endless dispute, not something to be desired right now.

"You know, there's a bigger world that it doesn't require you to be an adult to understand it." Tobi turned and began to head down the path.

The blond noticed Itachi go pass him and promptly followed, fearing the idea of being left behind. Deidara figured if he was going to get in trouble, he might as well not do it alone. At least there'd be some options to pass the blame onto if he ever got the chance. As they walked, he could only focus on the loud hum of the beating rain, the creaks of the overflowing sewer system, and the occasional screeches in the sky that only grew fainter with every meter.

"It's a shame really. Children are symbols of innocence and yet they can be corrupted from the moment they're born," Tobi sighed dramatically and shrugged. "Or well, that's what Mr. Zetsu tells me."

Deidara had a feeling Zetsu didn't tell him those things.

"When they feel the same pain of the people who suffered before them, most-and I say this with certain people as an exception-" Tobi halted and forced a cough, mouthing 'Hidan' between his hacks before continuing. "They never want to repeat that pain again, so they try to prevent it."

_I get what he means._ Deidara thought, though that in itself was ironic. The child watched as they approached an end to the outdoor morgue, the path leading them to another flight of stairs downwards.

Tobi held up a hand, causing the two children to stop and watch him. The subordinate turned briefly to make sure they had paused and then moved to slink towards the exit. Acting much like an overly enthusiastic assassin, Tobi had a bit too much spring in his step to truly be stealthy. Watching his attempt at being as graceful as an alley cat was almost painful to watch as he stumbled and awkwardly inched up to the door frame.

Deidara could help but let out an annoyed grumble, holding a hand up to his eyes to shield them from the pitiful attempt. Itachi simply smiled silently, humoured by the blond's reaction.

The older peered out the door, ears peeled for the slightest sound of suspicion. Encouraged, Tobi crept out to the stair case, cold rusted railing keeping to the sides of the steps. Once at the edge, he leaned out until his position was precarious. The bottom was dark, lacking a light of any kind. Though one could see reasonably well in the greyness, it wouldn't be hard to stumble over an object or two.

Tobi dared to lean out further but then quickly lost his footing. Deidara wasn't even facing his babysitter when he began to tumble down the steps like a bouncy ball, making loud sounds of pain and panic as he hit practically every step along the way. The only thing the child could manage was a face of utter disgust as a loud crash made him cringe terribly. How could the Akatsuki even stand this guy? How could Sasori put up with his very _existence?_ They keep Kabuto locked up as a danger and yet this guy was allowed to roam free.

"It's safe!" Both heard the call from below, be it in an injured tone. "No one's down here! Let's go! Let's go!"

A familiar gloved hand could be gleaned from the darkness, waving at them to hurry up. Itachi blinked and shoved Deidara slightly to get his attention before descending the steps hastily.

Deidara copied his blink but turned to give the morgue one last look before following wordlessly, mind still on the topic of how 'wisdom' and 'stupidity' were never usually words used to describe the same person

Once at the bottom of the steps, Deidara slowed immediately upon the ominous sounds of creaking that reached his ears. He raised an arm and pulled back his hood, no longer needing it now that he's reached the inside of the building. Pulling back his bang, he closed his right eye and opened his left. The world instantly became a bit brighter, shadows more defined as his left was more used to the dark and had adjusted accordingly.

Itachi stood idly by as he watched Tobi stagger back to a stand, the elder making whimpering sounds at his supposedly 'ouching' head and sides.

"Where are we now?" Deidara decided to ask, directing his question at Itachi in particular.

"I don't know." Itachi admitted, then turned his gaze onto the room around them, prompting the blond to do the same.

It looked like a basement of sorts, an underground area as the room lacked windows or any sort of pattering from the rain outside. It was an ominous silence, a small indistinguishable hum could be heard simply from the drums of their ears in order to replace the silence. The only other sounds were their breathing, Tobi's whimpers, and the creaking of overflowing pipes leaking with rain water.

Granted with a sharper eye, Deidara spied out some depictions on the wall beneath the stairs. Curious, the blond turned and strolled over, squinting slightly to get a better look at it.

At first glance, it would have looked like vandalism, graffiti by the rebellious sorts of people that likely had made their territory here. However, upon closer inspection, it was more than a mere scribble. It was an art piece, not the one that Deidara would really consider but one none the less.

It depicted 9 creatures stuffed into circles, each circle seemingly a sun until one realized all of the sun's rays radiated towards the sky and not in all directions. Drawn in a black paint, each creature faced the sky, their bodies in a sitting or crouching position while their tails were stylistically fanned out to the edges of the circle. They all seemed to be looking at the same thing, a stick figure in the sky with a cane in his hand.

"The tailed beasts, all nine of them."

Deidara turned to face the voice just behind him. Itachi approached, eyes also fixated on the work of what could have been vandals or artists. The blond narrowed his gaze at him, but his irritation was overrun by the curiosity he felt at the very subject.

The tailed beasts, a secretive thing to him. Sasori had never mentioned them before and yet Kakuzu claimed they were the very pillars of which the Akatsuki held their purpose, a keystone of sorts. Zetsu had explained the rest, but the whole concept still seemed like an old wives tale to him. Deidara directed his gaze to a odd looking horse in the lower left of the picture, its back faced away, head directed towards the man in the sky with its five tails flared out like a fan behind it. Even with Han in his mind, the tailed beasts didn't feel like a reality, not yet at least.

Itachi continued. "I heard when I was young that they were created by the Sage of Six Paths. They're powerful creatures, ones that destroyed many villages and nearly my own."

"Sage of Six Paths?" Deidara knitted a brow, having never heard of the moniker before. He'd heard plenty of old stories from the old croak of a Tsuchikage when he was still living in Iwagakure, but never once had he heard of such a person.

Itachi lifted a hand pointed towards the figure painted at the top of the stairs. "There, that's him. Apparently he was the creator of the origins of ninjutsu itself. He was also said to be the one who created the moon."

Both children stared up in awe for a moment, silently oblivious to Tobi watching them, arms crossed with some amusement at their fascination.

"He was the first to possess the rinnegan, the same dojutsu Leader has that allows him to use Shinra Tensei." Itachi explained briefly, still in some awe at the very lore of it all.

...

"Tch!" Deidara scoffed suddenly and turned away from the painting, forcing himself away from it. "Who cares? That was a long time ago and how do we know that really happened, hm?"

Itachi followed the boy with his gaze, silently noting a slightly pained look on the child's expression. It wasn't one of disdain or indifference, just turning the other cheek. Deidara frowned and stared at the opposite wall, the rusted pipes earning his attention in the greyness.

Meanwhile, Tobi had lost interest in observing the two children and had already approached the other end of the room. A steel door was built into the wall, obviously sound proof as even when he pressed up to it to listen, he could hear nothing short of his own breath. He withdrew and backed up, acting as if to inspect the door in hopes of giving a clue of where it could lead. A large black Torii gate was drawn around it, slightly faded and certainly older than the artwork the youth's were looking over. Cracks were already beginning to chip the paint, though the shape of it was not doubtful. Tobi blinked and raised two arms.

He made a selection of hand seals beginning with hands clapped together followed by a tiger and dog. Tobi ended it off with a hare, ending the sequence with a satisfying click from the door. He pressed a hand to the door and began pushing, prying it open to allow a orange light to stream through the crack.

Peeking inside, he saw the familiar hallway of the underground floor of Pein's tower, flickering lights from above keeping the area lit. Shrugging back, he kept the door ajar and turned to the others while waving a hand.

"Hey! Hey! I found a door that opens!"

Deidara exchanged odd glances with the other boy but ultimately shrugged off the strangeness of their situation. Both jogged over to the masked man and readied to enter the door.

_SCREECH_

All heads snapped to the staircase, the silhouetted figure of a masked creature with pronounced shoulders crouched. It's head bowed, it seemed to let out a low growl with what sounded like crackles of electricity in his throat. It stared straight at them as a streak of lightening flashed in the sky behind it, casting its shadow across the floor.

"Oh no!" Tobi cried and quickly shoved the boys through the door. "Come on! Come on! Let's get going!"

The creature raised its head, a ball of bright crackling lightening forming just past its nose charged for a second. Once complete, it dropped its head the launched it, the attack moving a fast as a bullet. Tobi managed to shut the door behind them just as the ball slammed into the door, exploding in a bright flash followed by dust and debris.

Tobi ushered the boys away from the door, the feeling of safety scarce as both knew the animal was just behind the thin layer of protection they had. All stood poised and quiet as the growls grew louder, indicating the creature had come closer.

_BANG_

Something hit the door but the door itself didn't jitter or dent. This prompted the three to back up a few steps, knowing that if the thing blasted through, there was no where for the steel rectangle to go but towards them, and hard.

_BANG_

_ BANG_

With each hit, the floor shook heavily, rattling the base. Deidara sweated slightly, mouth hung open to catch shallow breaths as he anticipated the door to eventually give. He expected another swing but strangely, a couple of seconds passed without them, though the growls remained.

A few more seconds, about five maybe. The creature's growls faded away along with the crackle of the electricity that seemed to course through its body. The sounds eventually faded completely, allowing the trio to finally either let go of a breath or finally take a deep one.

Deidara closed his eyes and sighed, then turned to Tobi. "Is it gone?"

Tobi bravely made his over the door and listened. Again, no sound made it through the wall, leaving them in complete silence.

Itachi's eyes swirled into a crimson, using only his most basic level of the sharingan. There was no need to go too far. Immediately, he could see blue colours flare within his two companions, their chakra systems visible. However, what caught his eye was the gigantic mass of chakra in the material in the door as well as the wall surrounding it.

"I see." Itachi caught their attentions. "This door, it uses a seal."

Deidara turned and raised a brow in slight confusion. "Eh?"

"Whoa!" Tobi exclaimed and jumped. He darted over to Itachi and stared straight into his eyes with faux admiration. "So the rumours are true, you really can use the sharingan!"

A vein popped in the blond's forehead. "Well he's an Uchiha, of course he can you dipstick!" He stomped slightly and continued to snap. "Also, how come the door was open if it was sealed? It doesn't work that way."

Tobi giggled at Itachi and rose from his bowed position. For someone who acted like a four-year old, he was sure tall. Even Deidara noticed the major height difference the masked man had with Sasori or Konan. A strange silence followed as the hole of the mask turned to him. For a brief moment, he thought he felt a strange feeling of dread.

"I know." Tobi lifted a hand, index finger raised to indicate he had an idea. "This door only opens once for good people!"

Another vein popped.

"WHY AM I EVEN FOLLOWING YOU!?"

* * *

**A/N: Sorry about the lack of updates! It's currently around the end of year so I'm buried in projects and finals. I'm also more tired than usual because of the hot weather so even when I try to write, my head gets woozy and stuff like that. Also, I've been working on rewriting one of the fanfics(it should be up soon) so that's also taken a slot in my time. I was gonna update earlier but episode 457 had me looking up fanart of Sasodei the entire time after I watched it(SO CUTE). **

**Thank you for reading! Nice to meet ya! Review if you'd like!**


	57. Return to the Surface

**Return to the Surface**

"WHY AM I EVEN FOLLOWING YOU!?" Deidara couldn't help but burst, fists clenched by his sides and glared darkly at the one who was meant to take care of him in Sasori's absence.

Itachi stood for a moment, then blinked before taking a few steps away from Tobi to avoid the coming conflict. Tobi seemed unaffected by the snap, then lifted a hand to scratch the back of his head awkwardly. "I'm sorry, I don't really know. I thought that was your decision..."

Deidara felt another urge to snap, knowing that the question itself was rhetoric but he could tell immediately that it was pointless. Tobi wouldn't stand there and take the blame, in fact he was particularly good at making comebacks and turning nothing into something. That's what usually ended up annoying him, the randomness of his actions. Sure, the blond wasn't one to say that reason was required for any action but the idiot was on a completely different level. He grit his teeth, almost appearing to force a grin. "Oh yeah?"

"Does this-" Itachi blinked and waited for a proper pause between the two to speak. "Does this happen a lot?"

"All the time." Deidara deadpanned, keeping his glare rested on Tobi. He calmed slightly, arms crossed. "Get used to it, you're head will be spinning too at some point."

"Don't listen to him!" Tobi jumped and raised both hands up defensively. "Sasori's grouchiness is just rubbing off a bit!"

The last vein popped.

"_**Say that again!**_"

* * *

"My mask..." Tobi whined as he lead the two down the dreary hall. A long crack was visible going from the right up top to his eye hole.

Deidara huffed, keeping his arms crossed, head tilted up in superiority. "That's what you get."

Itachi stared at the two walking ahead of him, a bead of sweat rolling down his temple. He opened his mouth to comment but the moment he tried to force the words through, something else came with it, a liquid gunk almost gagging him. Itachi's eyes widened as he jerked for a moment, resisting the urge to double over and rid of the bile from his mouth. Luckily, the other two were too busy with themselves, Deidara lecturing his fellow and perhaps 'lower' subordinate while Tobi feigned cowering in fear. Itachi slowly but shakily lifted a hand to his mouth to hold it in, screwing his eyes shut as he forced himself to swallow it back in. The taste was vulgar, as if his spit had been mixed with some rotting curry and something liken to a sharp acidic tinge.

To keep his mind off of the taste, Itachi focused on the hall, not quite sure where they were. This time, Deidara hadn't bothered to ask about their location, their trip started right after Tobi got knocked upside-the-head, the blond storming away likely to save some face.

Light flickered from the electric lights above causing the narrow hallway to blacken every one to five seconds or so. Itachi turned his head to gaze at the surprisingly well maintained pipes lining the halls, much more in abundance than the usual corridors of the tower. These pipes seemed like stainless steel in composition, the only signs of rust being in the flanges and flange cores just barely seeping an inch away from the tiny cracks.

Accompanying the one-sided lecture from the other two, Itachi felt mildly disturbed by the seemingly machine-like bangs and clangs that sounded as if they came through the wall. Deep hums along with what sounded like 'glugs' of water retreating from a tank. The white surfaces of the hall only made the shadows more exaggerated, forcing Itachi to turn to peer over his shoulder every now and then, reminded the horror films he watched sometimes when his parents weren't looking. Their footfalls sounded louder than the industrial noises, echoing ominously as Itachi feared the idea that perhaps he'd hear an extra pair of steps next to the three already heard.

The light flickered again, this time leaving them in the pitch black for more than a split second. Itachi abruptly stopped and apparently, the others had too as he heard the screech of shoes against the tiled floor, Deidara making a surprised noise at the sudden black out. Itachi couldn't say for the others, but he kept still, gazing around the room for a hint of what happened.

Despite the blackness, the boiler sounds continued, unfazed by it. Itachi blinked and heard a slight whining noise. For a moment, the hairs at the back of his neck stood on end, imagination coming into play as he was reminded of an old tale he read about crying children who had died after being abandoned by their mothers. It was an old tale told mainly by the old grannies of the Uchiha clan, a sort of warning to the youths not to go out at night alone.

"...Tobi?"

Itachi turned back to where he knew Deidara and the mentioned stood, frozen. "Deidara, is that you?"

He heard a relieved sigh come from the space in front of him, likely just a few feet away. Tobi seemed to giggle and teased that the blond was getting scared to which he was met with a harsh grunt.

"Are...are the lights going to turn back on?" The younger boy asked, voice shaky at the prospect that the trio would be forced to navigate the maze of halls in pitch black.

Itachi shrugged, though he was aware that the blond couldn't see it. He took another gaze around the ceiling and squinted. "It might just be a minute."

"What happens if they don't? Don't turn back on at all I mean." Deidara stalled, forcing himself to avoid stammering. He knew for a fact that he didn't like the dark. Sasori's floor was always a bit dark, but a light was always somewhere. In the pitch blackness, he preferred to sit on the floor and think desperately about not over thinking whatever sound he just heard. He hoped the answer wouldn't be the one he expected.

"I guess...we'll just have to keep going like this." Itachi proposed.

Deidara made a noticeably high-pitched sound, clearly showing fear at the idea. "B-but, we can't see anything!"

Okay, he was beginning to pity the blond. How couldn't he? The boy was younger than him by a year or two and certainly had a bad case of bed monster syndrome. Itachi wasn't one to say he hadn't experienced the same at least once, not only that but the meekness of his voice reminded him of his earlier days with Sasuke, and how the boy had to adjust to spending his first night alone in his first room.

He thought for a moment, allowing his stoic mask to fall loose where no one could see it. "Hm...I could try something."

"Oh! What are you gonna do!?" Tobi suddenly piped up. Itachi blinked, noting that the elder's voice sounded farther off than what Deidara's voice did.

"It's just a jutsu I used in the ANBU sometimes." Itachi weaved a tiger and snake, then raised the palm of his hand towards the ceiling as a concentrated ball of light began to form in his hand, just hovering over it.

Slowly, the gentle glow flooded a meter around him, just enough that he could glean Deidara staring at him in the exact place he should have been standing. The boy blinked and focused on the light, mild surprise coming over his features. The gentle orange-ish glow reflected in his single eye. "What jutsu is that?"

"Ghost lantern technique." Itachi replied as he raised his hand over head to further the light's reach down the hall. "It's mandatory to learn in order to enter the ANBU."

Itachi didn't think much of it when he saw Tobi just a few meters down the hall, even as the other was currently strapping the back of his mask on, just missing the moment when anyone could see his face. Tobi fixed his mask into place and leaned down to pick up his folded green scarf on the floor, throwing it over his shoulder as he began to wrap it around his neck loosely.

The blond followed his gaze and noticed the other down the hall. When Tobi turned to look at him, Deidara was quick to notice something missing.

With a light to keep things visible, Deidara's confidence seemed to take over once again, shrouding the meekness and fear that Itachi swore he heard a few moments ago. Marching over the elder, he squinted at him, causing Tobi to stare back curiously, wondering what the blond was looking at.

Deidara squinted his eyes until they were slits. "Your mask isn't broken."

"Oh!" Tobi jumped and patted the side of his mask while the other hand was propped on his hip, almost as if to display the swirly item. "It's hard to keep a broken mask together so I switched it out with another one so I wouldn't have to bother! You understand right?" He cocked his head almost pleadingly.

"What the? How many do you have?" Deidara knitted his eyebrows.

Itachi had to admit, he was also a bit curious now that he heard it.

Tobi hummed and stroked his chin in thought. "Well, as a ninja, broken masks aren't unusual so I usually keep about 50 on hand..."

"Fifty!?" Deidara staggered back slightly at the number, quickly scanning the other from head to toe, wondering where on earth he kept them all. He lowered his stare to the others pants. Tobi didn't appear to be keeping any scrolls on him, and not only that, but summoning anything was supposed to result in a 'poof' sound. Surely they would have heard that.

"Haha, hard to believe huh?" Tobi scratched his head.

Itachi decided early on not to even attempt to wrap the idea around his head. Many things about the masked man made little sense with so little anyone knew about him. Right now, they had bigger priorities than figuring out where Tobi kept all of his spare masks.

The light bounced slightly in his hand as he glided past the other two, gesturing for them to get a move on down the hall. Tobi hopped to a start, following him eagerly while Deidara lagged behind slightly, keeping an eye on the idiots back to rule out any places he could have put the masks.

Itachi kept to the front as so the shadows wouldn't obscure their path. Deidara kept his head stiffly directed forward. As much as he wanted to check the area behind them, he feared what he might see. Tobi simply crossed his arms behind his head, keeping a lax attitude throughout their walk.

"Where even is this place?" Deidara finally asked, the Uchiha agreeing with a nod.

"Just the underground floor of the tower." Tobi explained briefly. "We'll be climbing our way up shortly."

Deidara stared at the elder from the corner of his eye, contemplating something before finally mustering up the guts to ask. It had plaguing the back of his mind for a while now, he couldn't believe he'd never thought of it before. "Tobi."

"Hm?" He hummed quite giddily.

"Why do you wear a mask?"

Tobi was silent, not answering as quickly as the child would have liked. A tension grew as they walked. Deidara eyed the elder nervously, beginning to regret asking something that was probably a bit too personal. Had that question gone too far? Regardless of how stupid he was, the man was a ninja undoubtedly and a bad one at that. Shinobi didn't just wear masks for show.

He was snapped out of his thoughts when he heard a light hum from the other, Tobi staring at the ceiling visible above the light while tapping his chin. "The best answer I can give is...well, masks are cool looking. What else should I say?" He raised a hand to wave off of the thought.

Not the answer he was looking for, though at this point, Deidara was far too preoccupied with mentally dealing with the dark abyss around them to snap. He was never really surprised to hear anything mundane or comical from his babysitter, he got used to it a while ago. It was simply that he disliked it whenever it came up with others around. It only put a wrench in the boy's plans to be a respected associate of the organization.

"Isn't there any other reason for you to hide your face? I've never seen it." Deidara pushed at the question again, hopeful that repeating it would produce a different answer. An answer more interesting than the vague one he got.

"Well, of course, but..." Tobi turned back to look at them, only to see the blond's steely look staring straight at him, mouth set in a straight line that told him that he wasn't going to take any bullshit this time.

"Of course? What's your other reason then?" Deidara's voice grew into a low serious tone.

The two looked at each other, a full minute passing until Tobi opened his mouth to attempt a reply before Itachi pointed and spoke up.

"Watch out."

Tobi whipped his head around and shrieked, face coming dangerously close to the concrete wall just a few inches from his face. He froze on the spot comically while the other two children turned the corner. Deidara's amused scoff could be heard from behind, the snickering smile on his face felt like a glare on someone's back. "Tch! Dobe, un."

Further down the hall, the trio walked, Tobi this time keeping his sights forward despite the blond's insistent questioning. Both children didn't see much other choice than to follow him, trusting in the man to lead them to the exit. They moved like a small blot of light in a dark hall, their footfalls being the only sounds that even mildly comforted them in the industrial boiler room-like noise.

Soon enough, Tobi raised his head, unfolding his arms as he seemed to speed up his pace. "Not too far now."

Itachi looked up and squinted, noting the faint outline of a door coming into view. As the orange glow flooded over, the three paced towards it, Tobi taking to the front to look at the door. Tobi leaned forward and pinched his chin, humming slightly as he pressed one hand to the door and applied a little pressure. As expected, the door didn't budge. He knocked at it, wondering if he'd hear an echo through the wall, of course none sounded. Another sound proof door. "Huh? This one's sealed closed."

Itachi sighed while Deidara cursed out loud. "Great! We're stuck!"

"Now, now, we're not caged yet." Tobi waved both hands, earning curious looks from the two. "We can open it, it's just we need the key is all."

Tobi leaned back and sighed, then turned to the elder child. "Itachi."

The Uchiha blinked and stammered. "O-oh, yes?"

"Have you been to the organizations hideouts outside of the country with Kisame?"

Itachi nodded.

"Has Kisame ever let you open the entrance yourself?" The masked man asked, earning a curious look from the youngest boy.

"Yes, once." Itachi nodded. He began to get an idea of what the other was getting at.

"Good! It's the very same process! I can't open this door, but _you_ can." Tobi's voice lightened into a jollier tone, pointing at the boy. His finger moved to point towards his other hand. "With your ring naturally."

"I get it." Deidara mouthed, the idea clicking in his mind. He'd seen Sasori do it a few times before, when the boy was allowed to go with him to the hideouts scattered about the land. Normally he wouldn't be since it was a strictly business oriented place, nowhere for a child to be.

"Deidara."

"Hm?" He looked up at the man.

"It's going to be completely black for a bit. Just warning ya." He raised a hand, knowing that the boy feared the dark.

_That's right, I need two hands to do it._ Itachi glanced at the ball of light in his right, it's gentle glow wispy in some parts while simply blurry in others. While the ghost lantern jutsu was derived from a lightening style technique, it had evolved so all ninja could use it as a low C-ranker. He looked to the elder for a nod and promptly cut off the flow from his arm, causing the light to go out like a blown candle.

Darkness engulfed the hall once again and Itachi could easily tell from Deidara's sudden halt in breathing that the boy was frozen out of some degree of fear. He sauntered to the door and tried to remember vaguely how he did it.

The picture of Kisame appeared in his mind, remembering vaguely of a mission not too long ago in the Land of Birds. He raised his hands and hesitated at first, fingers just inches apart before forming a reversed tiger seal.

_Click_

"Good job Itachi!" Tobi clapped as a reward, giving praise.

Itachi pressed his hand to the door and pushed. A faint light leaked into the hall, eventually flooding it. The boy peeked out, welcomed with the sight of a familiar hall lined with rusted pipes.

"This is" Itachi paused mid sentence when Tobi slowly pushed his way past, forcing the door all the way open.

Tobi walked out into the hall looked around before turning back and beckoning to the other two. Both children exchanged glances and walked out into the hall, Deidara taking the liberty to close the door behind them.

"Here we are!" Tob proudly stated.

Deidara made his way over to Itachi's side, eyes wide. "Are we...are we on the first floor?"

"Nope! We're still technically underground but these are the more residential floors you're used to." Tobi nodded and gestured for them to come forward. "Well, let's go."

* * *

_Knock_

_Knock_

_Knock_

_What now?_ Sasori raised his head to look at the door across the room, hoping sincerely that it wasn't Pein or some other superior. He had a bad rep among them now, and what he was doing now surely wouldn't bring it up any how, quite the opposite in fact. He pushed back his chair slightly. "Who is it?"

_Knock_

_Knock_

"Danna."

Sasori blinked at the sound of his subordinate. He quickly shot up and turned for the door. "Hold on, I'll get the door."

He didn't bother to cover up his work like before. Deidara had seen it and barely cast a thought on it. Even if he asked, it was so easy to shut his questions down. He would find out later, a nice little surprise for the boy when the time was appropriate.

Sasori turned the knob and only pulled briefly, only to have a head of spiky black hair and a bright swirly mask poke inside. The puppeteer stood there, eye twitching at the sight of Tobi at his door instead of the child.

"Oh...hello?" Tobi squeaked.

"Y-you dare try an fool me like that?" Sasori growled, faced darkened over.

_THWAP_

Deidara and Itachi staggered back, frozen on the spot to see Tobi fly past and hit the opposite wall in a explosion of dust. A gust of wind followed, causing the blond to shield his face from the debris. Once it was over, both opened his their eyes, immediately noticing that an impact crater had formed where Tobi now laid limp in the rubble, head cocking slightly in a comical manner.

"Impersonating Deidara won't get you anywhere with me!"

The blond heard the puppeteer snap and quickly darted in front of Tobi with both hands up, hoping that Sasori wouldn't pit his anger on him as well. "Danna! Wait! That was me! Really!"

Sasori's scowl quickly melted into one of surprise. This comforted the blond somewhat as the boy relaxed and let his arms fall, letting out a breath he was unaware he was holding. The puppeteer continued to stare, attempting to fit the pieces into his mind before he smiled. "Oh, my apologies then."

Deidara cranked his head almost mechanically over his shoulder to peer at poor Tobi, seemingly dead in the rubble behind him. _'Sorry' isn't going to help him now..._

"Did you do what I told you to?" Sasori turned back to the workshop and headed inside, asking the question as he walked.

"Y-yeah..." Deidara was knelt down, poking Tobi's head. The blond suddenly got an idea and leaned closer to his face, trying to curl his fingers around the side of the mask to pull it off and take a peek.

No sooner than he could, a hand grabbed his arm and gently pried his arm away. Deidara almost yelped but took the hint to step back and leave him alone. The man may have been an idiot, but he was strong alright.

He backed off and entered the shop, pausing immediately when he noticed something was different. Deidara blinked and stared at the shelves, swearing that they didn't look that way before. Sure, they were moved every now and then when the puppeteer used them but they seemed...different. Actually, everything in the room seemed to be moved. He cocked his head slightly, but continued towards his master anyway, deciding that it was too trivial of a detail to question.

Sasori paused in the middle of the room, then whirled around the face the boy with an expression that didn't exude any sort of welcome air. "There's something I want to-"

He stopped at the sight of another child entering the room, Deidara stepping aside to allow room for Itachi while conversing about something. The boy frowned but brushed off whatever seemed to piss him about the Uchiha's reply.

The redhead lowered his gaze. _It's probably better if I bring this up some other time._ "Deidara." He called.

Said boy turned from pestering the raven, quickly coming to attention.

"I want to talk to you about some things tonight. Got it?"

Deidara didn't catch the serious tone and simply nodded excitedly. He sauntered over to the puppeteer, small smile on his face as he began to tell him about the things that happened today. "Danna, did you see Kakuzu's monster things all over the village?"

He knit an eyebrow. "Monster things?" What was he talking about? Of course he knew of the miser's techniques and the 'dogs' he brought out assist him in battle but he wasn't quite sure what the boy was getting with. He hadn't left the building at all today or yesterday, he wouldn't know of the events going on outside.

"Black things with masks." Deidara gestured towards his face demonstrate his point. "Did you see 'em?"

Sasori looked down at the boy, then shook his head. "No, I haven't. What's this about?"

"I don't really know. When I got back, I found Itachi and started talking. Then Tobi came along and told us to hide." The boy paused for a second to think, face forming an expression of slight concern. "They're looking for Hidan, though they're being really noisy about it."

* * *

Elsewhere, the rain only poured harder, thunder streaking the skies above the tower as two figures flew in the sky. The creature with broad shoulders floated without wings, riding out air currents in the turbulent wind as its body crackled with jagged streaks of white lines. Every now and then, a lightening strike would hit it, only for it to suddenly amplify and a flower of electricity would streak upwards and feed the dark clouds. With it, the lightening danced harder, striking the tops of the pillars more fiercely along with ear-tearing thunder.

The winged one flew just a few tens of meters away, screeching loudly with every other wing beat. Each flap created a gust that encouraged the surrounding atmosphere, worsening the storm until the gales made even the steel towers sway underneath it. It rose the gusts, blowing away the lightening as it scanned the streets below, spying for a particular teenager though it had no qualms with tearing apart anything that resembled human.

Below the storm, the atmosphere only calmed slightly, still overrun with two other creatures. The creature of water appeared by a street corner, wall jumping between the narrow alleys. With every bound, it made a screeching sound, throwing all of its weight onto the weak rusty pipes. When it pushed off, they broke, spewing out buckets of rain in its wake. Following it, the downpour only intensified. The puddles before turned into floods, a good foot of water covering the streets wherever it went.

On the drier parts, the one of fire lumbered at the very bottom of the village, moving slowly against the humid air that weakened it. Even in its state, it still radiated with an intense heat, creating drafts of hot air that rose and only clashed with the cooler winds up above, creating a hellish mixture of harsh gusts and intense downpour.

Kakuzu walked along a muddled street, muttering darkly to himself as he scanned it for any movement. He could hear their screeches and shrieks in the background as he walked. Even drenched and cold in this weather, he couldn't just leave this alone. He narrowed his gaze in frustration. _Dammit, where is he. Even as I've already sent my hearts to spread out and find him, he's nowhere! I confiscated his scythe here, I know he needs it. He wouldn't be anywhere else..._

"You there!"

He looked up and noticed someone approach from the skies. It was slightly hard to see past all of the rain drops but he could make out a pair of large white wings and a cloaked form hover just above him.

Konan floated, directing an icy glare down at the miser. "What are you doing? Why are you terrorizing the citizens of Amegakure?"

Kakuzu huffed and raised a hand. "Terrorizing? All I'm doing is looking for my partner, is that such a crime? I sealed his scythe away here in the village, I suspect he's at least been here."

"You lost your partner?" Her expression only worsened. "That was intentional wasn't it?"

"Intentional?" Kakuzu repeated, taken aback by the accusation. "If this intentional, I wouldn't be looking for him."

"Regardless, you're posing a threat to the village." Konan frowned. "Dispel your jutsu. We will assist you in handling this." She turned and flew off, leaving the miser to growl and make a few hand seals.

The creatures suddenly jerked and came to attention, facing the centre before all made a sharp turn. Kakuzu unbuttoned his cloak and slipped it off, shaking the access water dripping off of it as the wind heart appeared first. The creature shrieked to announce its arrival and sunk its head into its body until all it was was a winged mass of stringy flesh. It gurgled, then bounded for the miser's back, forcing the stitches apart as it rejoined its master's body, re-emerging as a mask against tan skin.

* * *

_Fwoo_

_BOOM_

Tobi landed and crouched a few metres away, creating a large splash as he hit a deep puddle. Just to his left, a stack of debris rose from the spot, accompanied by the sound sizzling and a dying fire. Tobi eyed the creature up and down, watching as it growled and snarled towards him, obviously pissed off at his antics.

_This one's weaker than the others. Its reaction is slower, and even when angry, it can't over exert itself._ Tobi stood up and pulled his scarf out of the puddle, sighing slightly at the now wet and soiled state of it. "Aw, I really like this scarf." He scratched the back of his hand. "Hopefully the mud washes off..."

A high pitched hum snapped Tobi out of his thoughts, noticing the a light form over the creature's mouth. The monster gathered a ball of fire over its snout and leaned forward to swallow it. Steam released from its eyes and the edges of of it mouth before its body skid back and it finally released it like a bullet leaving the barrel. Tobi lunged out of the way again, less gracefully this time as he landed on his front instead of on his feet, narrowly missing the weak fire style. The crates behind him went up in a flame, however quickly dying as it was pelted with intense rain.

Tobi peered over his shoulder and quickly propped himself on his elbow to get up. Once standing, he jumped onto a higher ground, standing sideways on some metal drainage pipes. "Touchy, touchy, yet still so slow." He shook his head and sighed with both hands raised in a shrug. "Hidan's causing more of a ruckus than ever before. Leader claims to have a plan but is this it? This can't be."

He disappeared from the pipe just as another concentrated sphere of fire hit the spot where he stood. Tobi appeared again elsewhere, near Pein's tower in the morgue he and the children had just left.

Tobi emerged from the shadows and pressed a hand to the side of one of the buildings, peering down below at the genin working away, carrying more bodies to be transported to a drier spot. Both men were grown, but they didn't seem at all bothered by their rank. To them, their rank meant nothing. To them, in the eyes of their god, they were all his equal subjects, and ranks in the military meant little more than an acknowledgement of strength.

Suddenly, the lightening heart appeared, disregarding the genin as it bounded past, knocking the over. Both ninja shrieked and fell back, letting the body fall off to the side of the road in its bag while they watched the creature pass. Their mouths were agape, unaware that something like that had been roaming the streets.

The masked man sighed and crossed his arms. Such a mess, nothing that could be handled any quicker. Tobi disappeared again and reappeared near the tower entrance. He walked to the edge of the shadows in the alley, noticing a familiar colleague leave the tower. Sasori emerged from the entrance donning his puppet armour Hiruko. He gave a weary look around and lead two others out as well.

Familiar faces, Deidara and Itachi looked to the puppeteer wonderingly, not so sure what was even happening themselves. The blond was less hesitant than the older, quickly and without question following his superior down the road. Itachi fell behind, still contemplating something that would either lead him to do the same or stray. The boy held an umbrella over his head, the trademark design of the oil-paper style from Amegakure, and yet much stronger and capable of providing much more than shade.

Itachi stared at the two heading off, then turned move his gaze in Tobi's direction, knowing that the man stood there. He seemed to be the only one to know he was there, the other two probably oblivious to his presence. Itachi narrowed his gaze into a glare and then turned on his heel, following a bit behind the other two.

_He will see many things._ Tobi moved his attentions to the blond boy not too far off. And that one will see to the truth someday. _It's inevitable now. Nagato was correct back then, even if he spared them in the end._

* * *

**A/N: A little late but close enough. Also, the ghost lantern jutsu is a technique that _sort of _doesn't exist. I normally only use jutsu in the video games or anime/manga for my fanfics but I needed something for the light. I know during the Chikara arc that Yamato used this ball of light technique that does have its own page in Narutopedia but its name is very very lame. So I made up a name based on this yokai I found on Wikipedia. It's filler too so it kinda isn't canon either. Then again, _you_ don't care too much right?**

**Thanks for reading! Nice to meet ya! Review if you'd like!**


	58. It Begins

**It Begins**

The rain had lightened, no longer fuelled by brew of lightening, fire, water, or air that emitted from creatures. On the damp street, Hiruko stood with Deidara and Itachi cautioned at a distance behind. Before them stood Kakuzu, back faced towards the trio as he buttoned up his cloak, the last creature finally retreated into his body.

Deidara kept his mouth set in a thin line, determined to show the opposite of fear on his face. He knew for a fact that due to the cues of the adults and the threats he received, he'd developed an avoidance of the miser. However, he wouldn't back down now. Itachi was here as much as he hated him, and Sasori was too. He wasn't quite sure what the puppeteer brought them out here to see, but it was probably important if he insisted.

"What do you want?" Kakuzu grumbled, then turned around only to direct his gaze immediately on the blond.

Deidara was struck with an intense feeling of dread. His eyes widened as a shiver ran through his body, not one of the cold, but of complete and utter fear. His legs felt more frozen than they had ever been before, almost as if the darkness in that hallway had returned. However, here he could see everything, including the killer intent in those eyes. _Why..._Deidara grit his teeth and managed to slowly slide a foot away, tempted to back up. _Why's he looking at me?_

Sasori hid his face behind the mask of Hiruko. "Where are my materials? You agreed to get them for me."

"Tch." Kakuzu turned around. "Don't get your panties in a twist, I got them right here." He reached into his cloak and shuffled around for a bit until he fished out a white rectangular box along with two test tubes between his fingers.

Sasori dared to approach, keeping his steps steady. He stared down at the items and scrutinized them for a second or two, then took them with the hand of his puppet. Hiruko's arm slipped beneath the cloak, putting the items away from view. "Thank you."

"Whatever." Kakuzu lifted his gaze back to Deidara. "You know during the assignment, your brat used some sealing tags to dispel your trap. It was quite interesting."

_Interesting?_ Deidara blinked, not quite sure whether or not to take that as a good or bad thing. On one hand, it could have been an genuine compliment, though he had a sneaking feeling it was anything but. This old man just wasn't the type.

"However, he was an annoyance and mostly useless. He didn't even warn me when Hidan left the area." Kakuzu scrunched his face up in frustration.

"I didn't send him to do anything like that." Sasori defended the boy, backing up towards the other two. "Your partner's loss is your own fault. Do the rest of us a favour and not try to drag anyone into this. I don't want to see how Leader will take this."

"That's precisely the reason why I'm looking for him now." Kakuzu's voice deepened, obviously ticked at the way the puppeteer spoke to him.

Hiruko raised his head haughtily. "It's pointless, he probably already knows."

"I dare you to say that again." Kakuzu grumbled.

Sasori smirked inside his puppet. "Say it again? Alright, it's poi-"

"_Danna, no_!"

The puppeteer paused and looked behind him, noticing Deidara look at him frantically, gesturing with a flat hand sliding across his neck while pointing at himself and Itachi. The boy articulating as best he could the words he wanted to say and yet he didn't want the miser to hear.

Sasori frowned. 'Don't do it or else we'll both get killed'? He turned back to Kakuzu. As it seemed, he either didn't notice or care what the blond was saying. Of course, if a fight breaks out, they'll get caught in the crossfire. Fine, I'll leave it alone.

Hiruko backed up, side facing the miser. "You know what? It's not worth it." He turned and ushered the boys back the way they came. Deidara was quick to follow orders while Itachi stared for a moment, then turned on his own will.

Kakuzu huffed and crossed his arms. "I knew it, you like kids."

"I don't."

* * *

The wind seemed to howl up on the ledge, much louder than even the rain itself as it hit the earth. Pein stood on the tongue of the giant gargoyle-esque statue, watching as the blacks forms zipped across the village underneath his gaze, all gathering in a single direction. Their screeches were loud, echoing just enough that he could hear them from all the way up here. Pein kept his gaze steady, then moved it to peer over his shoulder at Konan. "I didn't pay too much attention. As far as I know, Hidan entered Ame this morning and Kakuzu followed a couple of hours later. Hidan left even before Kakuzu arrived, heading for the north."

"Then he is too late." Konan closed her eyes and sighed, shaking her head slightly. "What about now? Do you think it will be too late to recapture Hidan?"

"He won't make it far." Pein turned to her. "As much as it seems Hidan rejects us, it's only because he has unfinished business. If we let him do that, then he won't cause any more problems."

She raised a brow. "Unfinished business?"

* * *

_SPLOOSH_

A shoe plunged into the deep puddle, only causing a minor hindrance as the shinobi continued forward into the intense rain and wind. It was a long trek all the way from the Land of Hot Water, but the squad was lucky enough to receive word that they would be meeting their target just on the mountainside, Mount Shumisen.

The ninja continued on, just lagging behind their leader, a woman from his own village. She was as skilled as any jonin, but even now in their wet terrain with a squad of perhaps 13 or so ninja, he felt that the weather would make it hard to see anyone further away than a few tens of meters off. Each one of them bounding from rock to rock, the pointed geological formations looked extremely hazardous, each pointed crag looking like an elongated top jaw of giant shark. Even the stalactites hanging off of them resembled sharpened teeth that could skewer any one of them.

"He's over there!"

He snapped out of his thoughts and gazed up where the finger was pointing. The squad came to a halt, each one gazing up at a upwards facing rock, an angled slope going up where one could see a circle if they squinted. The man dared take a step closer to see someone lying down, what looked like a black pike driven through their chest. Though it was hard to distinguish from the black rock, the blood was evident on it, dripping down the slope as the wind raged on.

"No doubt about it, that's our target." The woman frowned and fished a kunai from his pocket, twirling into her hand as she crouched slightly. "Remember, he's a Jashinist, so don't let him take your blood."

The squad nodded and followed in suite, fanning out to surround the stranger. The closer he got, the more he swore he heard someone talking. Even as he rounded the way so he could see the carnage quite clearly, several bodies mangled with pikes driven into their chests and hands, faces of terror frozen on their faces, he could only focus on what sounded like words. Not words he recognized, that teenager in the middle, their target seemed to be mumbling something, a strange string of dialogue he couldn't understand in a low almost grumbling tone. Parts of it sounded like japanese but parts of it seemed to be skewed.

Then, the teenager ended off his babbling with words he could comprehend.

"_Oh lord Jashin, please forgive me. I have committed an act most unforgivable. Oh holy lord, please accept these men and women as my apology_."

* * *

"There's a ritual that Sasori informed me of a few days prior to this incident. According to his research, there's a special gene that gives an individuals unusual eye colours, ranging from red to pink to purple. This gene is linked with an individuals potential to become immortal, but of course there are other factors." Pein paused, then continued. "_True _immortality in the way we think of it does not exist to a regular man. Jashinism produced a special jutsu that took advantage of that gene and extended its life using the chakra of several individuals. This ritual is performed by a group of people on those like Hidan to gift him a physical form of immortality and as a price, that group loses their lives."

"That's already happened hasn't it?" Konan asked. "He's immortal, we've seen it in action before. What else is there to do?"

"The ritual isn't finished yet." Pein held up his index finger. "This ritual always lasts one month, of course unless Hidan somehow dies during the process. This immortality he gains you see...is temporary."

* * *

Complete carnage.

Left and right, they were mowed down. Their cries blown away by the harsh winds and the pounding rain, thunder only lighting up the skies for the split second they needed to see the scythe gleam slightly and swing down into their skulls.

_KRSH_

One by one they fell, their bodies hacked to pieces. Long gashes went from one shoulder down to the sides, tearing through flesh, organs, and bone. The Jashinist charged through the squad, tearing them to pieces. Some beheaded, others simply gashed to bits. Blood sprayed in immense amounts, splattering new onto the old darkened marks left by his earlier sacrifices. Hidan held a maniacal grin, unable to contain his happiness at the numbers he was stacking, the body count rising, the pleasing sound of their voices going silent, the very feeling of winning itself. So powerful, he felt so powerful, so drunk on that power, that ability to kill. Oh how Jashin had granted him this joyous activity to carry on throughout his eternal life.

His reddened gaze fell upon the last of the group, the woman he grew to despise in his village. He staggered to a stand and stepped on his previous victim, forcing it to the ground and off of his scythe with a shrill sound. He smiled from ear to ear, almost literally. Even with the harsh wind, he could hear and see as clearly as ever, that woman.

"Monster." She choked out, body frozen in fear. Hidan hadn't drawn her blood yet, though as it seemed, he didn't aim to perform any curse during this fight.

"You might be right." Hidan said in a sing-song tone as he approached her. He stopped and scrutinized her appearance as he did with many others, scanning her from head to toe. "Hm? Wait!" He blinked in surprise and pointed. "I recognize you! Did you have a little sister?!"

She blinked as well, but then twisted her face into a scowl. "I did as a matter of fact, but not anymore."

"AH! HAHA!" Hidan couldn't contain his excitement, laughing into the heavens above. "Oh this'll be fun! First a little girl and now her sister! I remember listening to you two after school! You planned to move in two months but surprise surprise! I came around and fucked her up pretty bad!" His shoulder slumped, mouth still held in a grin though toned down. "Hehe, she didn't put up much of a fight though. I wonder..."

Hidan drew his gaze onto the elder sister. "Will your death be more brilliant than hers?"

* * *

"In order to gain permanent immortality, he has to make a certain amount of sacrifices. Then, he will be secured for physical wounds. Of course, he will still die of malnourishment or by other means." The Akatsuki leader nodded and turned back to the village and eyed it for a moment.

"Will Hidan return?" Konan finally asked.

Pein was silent for a moment, then turned walk towards her. "No, not unless Kakuzu goes to get him. Hidan is on Mount Shumisen, tell him to look there for his partner." He passed Konan and ducked into the mouth of the statue, entering the dark room.

* * *

The rain finally seemed to lighten, no longer enraged as Sasori had noticed for his duration of looking out this window. He stood on the hallway, observing with a neutral expression as things finally quieted down. He had his materials, Itachi would be held over for the next few months or so, perhaps a year if he wasn't suffering too bad.

Deidara was out again, this time staying over on Kisame's floor with Itachi. For some reason, the puppeteer didn't truly believe he hated the Uchiha, maybe just a little. He didn't reject their bond, but it was bothersome at times. Itachi was just too nosey, and Sasori wasn't the type to disclose his unfinished works to anyone but his subordinates. The blond would be staying over for the rest to the day and hopefully return by his curfew or else the redhead would have to march over there and drag the boy by his ear.

He made what sounded like a sigh and turned away from the window, strolling for his studio just down the hall.

_At least it's quiet. I can get some work done._

* * *

Kakuzu had never seen weather this bad before, even in Ame. It took him a few hours but he had gotten here pretty quickly. After Konan told him about the whereabouts of his partner, he didn't hesitate to start on his trek to get that kid on a leash.

His cloak dripped wet and flapped in the wind. Kakuzu jumped from crag to crag, noting the footprints on the thin layer of mud that coated the bottom of the jutting structures. He paused on a ledge and knelt down, putting a hand down beside one to inspect it. _Someone's come this way, a lot of people. None of them were Akatsuki though._ Kakuzu stood up and continued, darting into the storm.

Further up, he emerged atop a particularly large rock, met with the sight of a massacre not unfamiliar to his eyes.

Bodies strewn across the floors in a similar fashion to the type seen at the shinto temple he and the puppeteer arrived at. In the middle of it all, one body laid on the floor, eyes directed towards the sky in an almost dream-like state. A pike was driven into his chest, mouth mumbling what the miser recognized as prayers.

Kakuzu grumbled and sat down, propping his head up on his arm. He had seen these rituals at length in his youth, very long and boring tasks that he didn't imagine were a part of such an active and destructive religion. Assuming this just started, Kakuzu would be sitting here for a long time. It would be pointless to try and stop the kid.

* * *

"Good night." Itachi nodded.

Deidara looked at him oddly for a moment, then simply made a grunt of acknowledgement before turning for the stairs that lead up to his master's floor. Itachi resisted a smile. The kid should be used to this, though, perhaps only with his danna where it made more sense. A simple acquaintance like him might have crossed the line to the boy's standards.

Itachi watched him disappear up the steps and turned for his own way back. Down a few floors and he finally arrives to the one he's most familiar with, the one that always seems to reek of the scent that Samehada. Not that he dislikes the scent, but it always fools him into thinking he's walking through a hallway in a community pool.

_Groa..._

The familiar sound of something hard tapping the floor reached his ears. Itachi stopped and stared down the hall, noting the sound become louder. A tapping accompanied by a sort of dragging and swishing sound. The echo went silent for a few seconds, then picked up in a faster tone. A shadow dragged across the turn of the corridor before finally a lumbering figure appeared at the corner.

"Samehada?" Itachi blinked, staring at the doggish sword. The sword glistened with water, then rattled its scales to confirm Itachi's chakra. Immediately, it rushed over to him, waddling about and dragging puddles of water after it, making the floor moist and slippery. The Uchiha turned and faced the thing, staring down at the sword.

Samehada made something that sounded like a mix between a dog bark and a tigers growl. It rattled its scales again and inched the corners of its jaws upwards in a sinister looking but probably friendly smile. It hopped a little on its front scales, elongated to serve as front arms.

Itachi cocked his head and knelt down. "Where's your owner?" He didn't expect a reply, if anything, Samehada probably didn't either know or care what he was saying. The sword appeared to stare at him. Itachi blinked and pat it, making sure to keep his touches light as not to cut himself. "What are you doing alone?"

A strange occurrence. Normally Samehada would be with Kisame, either riding his back or taking a nap nearby. Itachi remembered a time when the sword wasn't as fond of him. If it weren't for Kisame giving it orders, the sword usually avoided him regularly. According to his partner, he shouldn't feel offended, Samehada just isn't fond of fire style chakra, causes it to gag and sometimes if ingested, gave it stomach aches. It took a while but eventually, the sword allowed Itachi near it. Now, Itachi could only wonder why it was with him and not its preferred companion.

The sword suddenly jumped, causing the boy to jump back in surprise, fearing for the condition of his left hand. Samehada made a weird wiggling motion and began to motion between him and the wall, making Itachi back up to give it room to pass, a trail of water pouring out in its wake.

Itachi gazed down the hall. "Um, alright..."

"Sorry about that."

He turned the other way to see Kisame emerge from the corner of the hall, scratching the back of his head nervously. "Samehada's acting a bit strange today, even I can't really tell why." Kisame jogged over and looked down at the boy. "I heard you were with Sasori today. I also heard Deidara's back. Did you happen to get any medicine from him?"

The boy's eyes widened and quickly whirled for the stairs. "Oh, I forgot."

"Hehe, you should probably go back and get it." Kisame nodded and continued to jog after his sword, disappearing past a corner.

"Right." Itachi nodded and headed back up.

Again he arrived at the empty corridor. Itachi noted the dim lights for the nightly hours. He barely came here, so he'd never known that the lights could be turned down. Going about his pre-established route, Itachi began to rehearse what kind of excuse he could make for disturbing the two so late in his head. Thanks to their previous encounter, the boy got a feeling the puppeteer disliked being interrupted, however wasn't one to shoo away polite visitors.

He saw the door up ahead. Itachi opened his mouth and breathed a few times, making sure that his coughing fits wouldn't halt his introduction. Itachi felt a little disheartened, just thinking about it made it feel as if they were coming. Well, he could hear some sounds inside already, he'd better not make his arrival too loud.

Approaching the door, Itachi stood at the front and raised a hand to knock before the a sudden shrieking and yelling filled his ears.

_CRASH_

Itachi took a few tentative steps back, wondering briefly if whatever chaos was going on in there was going to come barging through the door. Fear clouded his thoughts for a moment but he cleared it when he noticed the distinct sound of Sasori's voice, slightly raised. He relaxed his shoulders and tried to think logically. Maybe Sasori was working on a project right now and the subject was being uncooperative? Wasn't far-fetched, Deidara had given the Uchiha grotesque images whenever mentioning his master's work.

_I'll come back later..._ Itachi reasoned and turned away.

"DANNA!"

The voice trailed off into an indeterminate muffling. Itachi whirled around, ears peeled to stare at the door.

"That explains it. Do you understand how suicidal that is?!" That sounded like Sasori.

"You're overreacting!" Deidara surely.

_CRASH_

He stood there for a couple of a moments, listening hard for another sound, any sound. It sounded like an argument, but it couldn't be, could it? Those two never argued, not this bad at least. If anything, Itachi thought they were so close, neither could ever get mad for long. Itachi was rooted for a second, unsure of what to do. Of course, normal thought would have told him to back off and wait a an hour before returning but Itachi knew that Deidara wasn't that strong. If worst came to worst, Deidara could be dead and Itachi would have just run away.

Not that he normally would have cared, but Deidara was only eleven. Itachi didn't retain the mindset of his parents and ancestors. Any child that young shouldn't have to die so early. Otherwise, it pained him to think that it would be his own fault once again that he would cause pain to a youth.

Swallowing his fear, Itachi slowly leaned into a walk, taking his time to creep up to the door and raise his hand to knock. He would surely be disturbing them, but he couldn't let this go on by itself.

_Knock_

_Knock_

_Knock_

Itachi immediately heard someone curse, though he couldn't tell who. There was some muffling and shuffles until he stiffened at the sound of footfalls approaching. The boy stood back, unsure of whether or not the one who would come to see him cared about where their wrath went.

The door lock clicked and the knob turned to reveal Sasori standing by the small crack, only a single hollow glare looking down at him.

"What do you want?"

Itachi resisted an audible gulp. Keeping a steady gaze on the elder, he tried to smooth out his tone. "I-I forgot to ask you about my medicine. I needed some for the coming months?"

Brown irises lightened and the door creaked wider ever so slightly to reveal all of the puppeteer. The corners of Sasoir's lips raised slightly into a smile that barely helped to raise the mood. He could tell that smile was a lie. It looked no different than any other the redhead had ever gave him or Deidara but by now, he suddenly could tell something was wrong with it.

"Of course, I forgot as well. I'll get one for you." Sasori turned and didn't let his smile fall, leaving the door open to allow Itachi to gaze into the studio.

A complete mess. Puppets from the ceiling appeared to swing from left to right, hitting each other to make clacking sounds as if they had been disturbed. Several of the beakers had fallen and broke on the floor, shards strewn about. Sasori walked on them despite the hazard, ignoring the fact that some stuck to his shoes, imbed into the rubber.

Itachi didn't dare blink this time, slowing his breathing intentionally to calm himself. He gazed up and saw a familiar young boy stand not too far away, head bowed, hands stiffly held to his sides. Itachi couldn't see his face, back turned to him and shaking with what could either be snickers or hesitant sobs. Deidara didn't seem to be oblivious to his entry, raising his head and turning to shoot a black glare at the Uchiha. Absolute hate and disgust showed in his eyes, the corners of his sight creeping with unwanted tears.

This is all your fault.

"Itachi, you can come in if you want."

The raven glanced at Sasori, but still felt the burning glare at the side of his face. He sauntered inside, making his way over to the older Akatsuki, fully aware of the darkest glare he'd ever received following. Itachi stood by the puppeteer and gazed back at Deidara, noting the boy's unusual silence. If Deidara was angry, he always found a way to voice it. The blond was never silent about his emotions, but as it seemed, this time he was.

Itachi gazed up at Sasori who was busy shuffling through a shelf stocked up with odd concoctions and folded pieces of papers. The puppeteer didn't seem bothered at all, as if nothing had occurred in this room.

Finally, he mustered up the courage to ask. If anything, he had a better chance of defending himself than Deidara did in terms of skill. "Did something happen?"

"Nothing happened." Sasori picked up a plastic jar and inspected his nonchalantly, then brought his gaze up to Itachi.

"It sounded like an argument." Itachi couldn't help stop bit of his confidence from emerging, and as it seemed, Sasori didn't like that.

"Then it was an argument, so what? They happen." Sasori set the bottle onto the table and stared at the other Akatsuki squarely, as if warning him. "You know, I don't like it when you ask about my affairs. I told you I would be having a talk with him later, that's what I did." He lidded his eyes disapprovingly, smile all but gone as he picked up the bottle again and handed it to the younger. "You should get going, it's for your own health."

He took it reluctantly. Itachi turned and headed straight for the door, there was little he could do now. Staying any longer would anger Sasori and with the situation at hand, the raven was no longer confident that he could take on the puppeteer in his own territory, especially in his own condition. He didn't want to leave it alone, but at least he addressed the problem at all.

"The brat had to be disciplined."

Itachi halted and peered over his shoulder, noting the odd look Sasori was giving him. Pressing his lips together, he uttered one last question. "Why?"

Sasori narrowed his eyes dangerously in distaste. "_I have my reasons_."


End file.
